IND vs NED - The scoreboard gap looked comfortable in the end. Still, the way certain top-order batters fell apart in Ahmedabad raises alarms as the squad heads into the Super 8s.
IND vs NED: 3 Danger Signs From Team India's Win In Ahmedabad Going Into The Super 8
1. Top-Order Fragility Remains a Lingering Issue
Abhishek Sharma just bagged his third straight duck. This failure forced the middle order to start a rescue mission from the very first few overs.
Ishan Kishan is still piling on the runs and keeping things steady. But let's be honest: if the team cannot find a solid opening pair, they are in trouble. Things will only get tougher when they face more aggressive bowlers in the next round.
Management is sticking to their all-out attack plan for now. However, losing wickets this early proves that they need to find a better middle ground between taking risks and actually staying at the crease.
2. Vulnerability Against Deceptive Spin Bowling
The latest match highlights a real worry: this batting lineup struggles against quality spin when the ball starts to grip. Suryakumar Yadav and Tilak Varma looked okay in the middle overs. Even so, the team's scoring rate against slow bowlers is dragging. It is actually among the slowest of any top-tier team in the tournament.
The Dutch spinners managed to get some turn and force mistakes. This serves as a clear warning that the better spin attacks in the Super 8s will jump all over that hesitation. Relying on the flat belter pitches in Ahmedabad might be hiding a bigger issue. The batters struggle to rotate the strike or find the fence whenever the ball sticks in the surface.
3. Death Over Execution and Bowling Reliance
The bowlers are mostly carrying this team right now. But things got way too close for comfort when the Dutch tail-enders started finding gaps against the backup pacers. Jasprit Bumrah is as clinical as ever. The problem lies with the rest of the pack; they just did not show that same discipline at the death.
If the main strike bowlers do not get early breakthroughs in a big knockout game, the team do not really have a Plan B to stop power hitters. More versatile teams are going to poke holes in that rigid approach.
