Inconsequential matches in a tournament are not that meaningless. Teams can use these fixtures to try out reserve players, rest frontliners, or can just go in with a ruthless approach making no changes and crushing the opponent. From that point of view, it will be interesting to see what the Indian team does against Oman in the Asia Cup on Friday. The Men in Blue have already qualified for the Super Four stage. Even if they lose, it won’t change anything.
However, it is still an opportunity for giving some game time to the players who were not part of the XI in the first two matches. There are four — Jitesh Sharma, Rinku Singh, Arshdeep Singh and Harshit Rana — who have not got a game yet. At least two of these four can be expected in the XI against Oman.
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Bowlers first. If Jasprit Bumrah is rested, then Arshdeep can make it to the side. Bumrah is a bowler India want to preserve and there is no need to play him against an associate member team.
Arshdeep is a T20 specialist, who adds variety as a left-armer. He is India’s most successful bowler in this format, with 99 wickets in 63 matches. He has missed out so far because India went in with three spinners. So, if either Bumrah or a spinner is given a break, this Punjab player stands a good chance. Rana’s wait may get longer in that case.
The other options are Jitesh and Rinku. Both have impressive records in the limited opportunities they have got. If Jitesh, the wicketkeeper, has to come in, then Sanju Samson has to make way. However, this is a tricky call because even though he was in the XI, Sanju didn’t get to bat against UAE and Pakistan. The team management might just give him a chance to do that against Oman. In that case, Jitesh will have to wait.
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Rinku has not got a chance yet because Shivam Dube is in the lower middle-order. He can bowl too. Rinku is a destructive batter and a tad unlucky that he is not finding a place in the XI. Oman is a good match to give him some time in the middle.
However, these are theoretical possibilities only. The team might just want to stick to the combination it has preferred so far and focus on decimating the opponent, like it did in the first two games. The reserve players will have to be on the bench if that happens.
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