IND vs AUS, Dubai pitch in focus: Spinners shining but Indian batters will be tested in Champions Trophy semi-final

Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli during India's practice in Dubai (BCCI Photo)

Not often does one talk about an occasional frailty on a day the team tops the group with an all-win record to reach the semi-finals of a major tournament. Truth be told, before the Indian spinners bowled New Zealand out of the match, there were nervous moments with the bat. Alongside celebrating the bowlers, why not look at the other side?

Exposed too much to the kind of white ball cricket that produces tall scores, the Dubai leg of Champions Trophy has produced a different experience. In three matches in India’s chosen venue so far, never did a team go past 250. For players and fans used to 350 as par, this has been entertainment of another kind.

It was far from a happy outing though, for the Indian batters against New Zealand. Having flexed muscles while chasing 228 and 241 against Bangladesh and Pakistan earlier, the glamour boys were asked questions almost throughout the 50 overs and not always did they come up with convincing answers. Rattled early on, enduring a painstaking rebuilding process and then almost losing the plot in the end — it’s not what they are associated with.

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India’s batting approach to ODIs has been one-dimensional of late and the pitches have a lot do with it. Where the ball doesn’t swing, seam or spin and the bounce is predictable, Rohit & Co. go hard from the start and maintain that tempo through the 50 overs. The accumulators, power-hitters and all-rounders sustained this ploy unerringly until the final of the 2023 World Cup — India’s last major ODI challenge before the ongoing event.

However, international cricket means the examination will vary according to geographical conditions. In ODIs, the world has adapted a template that aids high scoring, but there is no rule that it will be the same everywhere. That was in store for India in the last Group A encounter at Dubai International Stadium. They can expect the same in semi-final on March 4.

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New Zealand’s new-ball bowlers moved it both ways and generated bounce. The ball wasn’t coming onto the bat at an ideal pace, it gripped the surface and the spinners extracted purchase. After losing Rohit Sharma, Shubman Gill and Virat Kohli with 30 on the board and crawling to 45/1 after 15 overs — the Men in Blue were in unfamiliar territory.

This is where champions come good. They perform when driven out of their comfort zone and adapt to the new surroundings. Shreyas Iyer and Axar Patel played according to the situation for a long time, but fell when they needed to carry on. Impulse got the better of them, not the bowlers. From 170/4 after 36 overs, 249/9 in 50 was not satisfactory.

Against an Australian attack without frontline bite and sting, India’s batters are expected to be tested again. What they got in the end against New Zealand proved to be enough due to Hardik Pandya. But for him, the Kiwis would have been chasing 235 or so. Alarm bells heard and responded well in the end, the Indian batting unit would like to perform at least one notch higher hereon.