India's new-ball puzzle: West Indies series offers young pacers a chance to stake claim
toi
newspoint|01-10-2026
Guwahati: With the ODI World Cup in South Africa just a year away, the Indian team management’s priority now is to identify the bowling combinations. A big part of the process is trying out different new-ball bowlers in the ongoing ODI series against West Indies.
“You may see different bowlers taking the new ball because it is important for us to assess how these young players respond under pressure,” spin bowling coach Sairaj Bahutule said on the eve of the second ODI.
It may be noted that India don’t have the services of Jasprit Bumrah for this series as he is part of the T20I team currently in the Asian Games in Japan.
In the first ODI in Thiruvananthapuram, India opened the bowling with seam-bowling allrounder Nitish Kumar Reddy and Prasidh Krishna after benching Mohammed Siraj. Reddy’s only over with the new ball, however, yielded 18 runs.
The team management must continue working on creating backup resources for the injury-prone Bumrah and Hardik Pandya.
Bahutule stressed that identifying the right pace attack for South African conditions remains a key objective over the next 12 months.
“We are aware of the type of pitches we’re likely to encounter in South Africa. The focus is on identifying players who can have the most impact in those conditions,” he added.
The experiments are likely to continue.
“These series are a good opportunity for us to see different combinations. We want to understand which bowlers can operate effectively in different phases of the innings,” Bahutule said.
One bowler who has already strengthened his case is Kuldeep Yadav. The left-arm wrist-spinner produced another match-winning display in the opening ODI, ensuring India stayed in control.
Bahutule described Kuldeep as “a match-winner for India” and praised both his work ethic and ability to deliver in any conditions. Kuldeep is expected to compete for the lead spinner’s spot in the XI when India reach South Africa for the World Cup.
Kohli’s happy-hunting groundThere are fewer concerns on the batting front. One may expect another run feast on Wednesday.
Kohli has played two ODIs at the Barsapara Cricket Stadium, scored two centuries and walked away as the Player of the Match on both occasions.
Greaves out of 2nd ODIJustin Greaves, who scored a century in the first ODI, has been ruled out with a calf injury.
Kohli has played two ODIs at the Barsapara Cricket Stadium, scored two centuries and walked away as the Player of the Match on both occasions.
Greaves out of 2nd ODIJustin Greaves, who scored a century in the first ODI, has been ruled out with a calf injury.
“You may see different bowlers taking the new ball because it is important for us to assess how these young players respond under pressure,” spin bowling coach Sairaj Bahutule said on the eve of the second ODI.
It may be noted that India don’t have the services of Jasprit Bumrah for this series as he is part of the T20I team currently in the Asian Games in Japan.
In the first ODI in Thiruvananthapuram, India opened the bowling with seam-bowling allrounder Nitish Kumar Reddy and Prasidh Krishna after benching Mohammed Siraj. Reddy’s only over with the new ball, however, yielded 18 runs.
The team management must continue working on creating backup resources for the injury-prone Bumrah and Hardik Pandya.
Bahutule stressed that identifying the right pace attack for South African conditions remains a key objective over the next 12 months.
“We are aware of the type of pitches we’re likely to encounter in South Africa. The focus is on identifying players who can have the most impact in those conditions,” he added.
The experiments are likely to continue.
“These series are a good opportunity for us to see different combinations. We want to understand which bowlers can operate effectively in different phases of the innings,” Bahutule said.
One bowler who has already strengthened his case is Kuldeep Yadav. The left-arm wrist-spinner produced another match-winning display in the opening ODI, ensuring India stayed in control.
Bahutule described Kuldeep as “a match-winner for India” and praised both his work ethic and ability to deliver in any conditions. Kuldeep is expected to compete for the lead spinner’s spot in the XI when India reach South Africa for the World Cup.
Kohli’s happy-hunting groundThere are fewer concerns on the batting front. One may expect another run feast on Wednesday.
Kohli has played two ODIs at the Barsapara Cricket Stadium, scored two centuries and walked away as the Player of the Match on both occasions.
Greaves out of 2nd ODIJustin Greaves, who scored a century in the first ODI, has been ruled out with a calf injury.
Kohli has played two ODIs at the Barsapara Cricket Stadium, scored two centuries and walked away as the Player of the Match on both occasions.
Greaves out of 2nd ODIJustin Greaves, who scored a century in the first ODI, has been ruled out with a calf injury.
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