Four bowlers could be the template for India’s success

KANPUR: Depending on how one’s interaction shapes up, audacity/confidence can be used to sum up Virat Kohli.

KANPUR: Depending on how one’s interaction shapes up, audacity/confidence can be used to sum up Virat Kohli.

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It was evident on Wednesday when he admonished some reporters who were whispering while he answered a question. Former India captains may have dealt with it their way. MS Dhoni would have cracked a joke, while others like Rahul Dravid would have looked at the media manager.

But the no-holds barred approach makes Kohli the aggressor. It reveals clarity of thought, leaving little room for ambiguity. Even when he tries to withhold strategy, he does it in short, crisp sentences.

“We can’t disclose that,” he said, asked about the bowling combination he will play. “The options are open to us till the morning of the match day.”

Cricket wisdom dictates that to win matches a team needs 20 wickets, and a five-man attack is the best bet. It needs sacrifice from the batting line-up, and that can put pressure. That’s why ex-players like Javagal Srinath say playing five bowlers is a bold move.

Kohli, the aggressor, was always ready to field five bowlers but with time he has become less rigid. He says he doesn’t follow a rule, as is evident from recent tours when he made allowances for an all-rounder or simply went in with four.

Against touring teams, India captains have also fielded three spinners and a seamer. The last time the Kiwis came to India in 2012, Pragyan Ojha bowled the first over of the Bangalore Test and R Ashwin and he swept them aside in the two-Test series.

Coach Anil Kumble, who watched the proceedings from his office at the Chinnaswamy Stadium as the then-president of the Karnataka state body, made it clear that what he fancies will bring him victory.

He used KL Rahul, Rohit Sharma and Ashwin in close catching practice. As he batted, there was a silly point, short leg and slip. For a while, he brought in a fourth close-in fielder.

Kumble hails from an era where the seamer was usually a formality at home and often tasked with abrading the ball.

For the Kiwis, who have less experience on these surfaces, Kanpur presents a challenge. The heat is unbearable and the dry wicket with cracks is unnerving. Perhaps, four bowlers might just be enough and could be the template for the series.