It is no rocket science that KL Rahul is the one India batsman who is under the most pressure to deliver. In the three T20Is, Rahul has registered scores of 1, 0 and 0, and although he has received the backing from captain Virat Kohli, even he is aware that he cannot take his place in this Indian team to be granted.
While Rahul's lack of form is a major concern for India, former Pakistan batsman Ramiz Raja feels the middle-order needs to be performing better if India's top order is disappointing them. Raja is pointing to the likes of Rishabh Pant and Hardik Pandya, saying the wicketkeeper batsman needed to produce a bigger knock once he was set, and the all-rounder should have fared better than a 15-ball 17.
"When you have this kind of opening combination against England and they're getting out early, pressure is bound to be created. Ishan Kishan was being batted at No. 3, and England pulled off a brilliant strategy of bowling shirt to him. Besides, Rishabh Pant is getting out after scoring 25. He should be getting out after being set," Raja said on his YouTube channel.
"Similarly, Hardik Pandya's bat is not working. England are bowling throat balls against him. They know they can't afford to bowl full to him or make him face spin. So they are sticking to short of good length and Pandya is appearing ungainly while trying to go for the big shots. We don't expect him to score 17 off 20 balls. He usually takes off from there and flattens the opposition. Because of his failures, his lack of big-hitting, the entire team has been pushed into a whirlpool.
{{/usCountry}}"Similarly, Hardik Pandya's bat is not working. England are bowling throat balls against him. They know they can't afford to bowl full to him or make him face spin. So they are sticking to short of good length and Pandya is appearing ungainly while trying to go for the big shots. We don't expect him to score 17 off 20 balls. He usually takes off from there and flattens the opposition. Because of his failures, his lack of big-hitting, the entire team has been pushed into a whirlpool.
{{/usCountry}}With England already ahead 2-1, another win will help them take the series, which is why the Thursday's fourth T20I becomes all the more crucial for India, who need to win it to stay alive and push the series into the decider on Saturday. Raja feels despite the little positives with the ball, India will require a better show if they are to come on top of this strong England side.
It's a make-or-break situation for India now and they will have to play their best cricket. They will have to figure a way to deal with Mark Wood, Jofra Archer and Adil Rashid and improve on their own bowling. Chahal had operated on a wider angle against English batsmen and killed their rhythm. In the same way, the fast bowlers used the change of pace to rattle the English batsmen. They need wickets and they have what it takes. The fielding needs to improve as well.