T20 World Cup 2024 is the next thing that the Indian T20I team should focus on. This year’s World Cup campaign was better than the previous one as the Men in Blue topped the group in Super 12. However, they suffered an embarrassing 10-wicket loss in the semifinal against England.
India made some big changes to their team management after T20 World Cup 2021. While the effects were slightly visible, it still felt like a lot more needs to be changed before T20 World Cup 2024 arrives. Here are four radical changes the Indian team needs to make.
1. Appoint Hardik Pandya as captain and build the team around him
Rohit Sharma should step down as T20I captain and focus on ODIs and Tests, as the next T20 World Cup is two years away. Hardik Pandya, who led Gujarat Titans to IPL 2022 championship, should be made the new captain, and the selectors should build a fresh squad around him.
2. Use KL Rahul as an attacking option
KL Rahul played the anchor’s role for India in recent matches. Instead, he should be asked to play attacking strokes from ball number one. If he fails to do so, the team should look for options because there are many options available.
3. Pick only genuine pace bowlers
India’s fast-bowling has not been the best in recent ICC events. The emergence of Arshdeep Singh has been a positive sign. Picking an express pacer like Umran Malik or Kuldeep Sen could help the team a lot.
4. Play less bilateral series in T20I format
Playing so many T20Is between T20 World Cup 2021 and T20 World Cup 2022 did nothing but increased the confusion in the team. Yuzvendra Chahal, Dinesh Karthik and Harshal Patel, who regularly played in bilateral series, were benched for the T20 World Cup semifinal.
5. Allow Indian cricketers to play in CPL and Major League Cricket
Indian cricketers need to spend as much time in the Caribbean as possible for T20 World Cup 2024. They need to master the conditions in the West Indies and the USA, the hosts for next T20 World Cup, and the best way to do so is allowing Indians to play in CPL and MLC, especially in the knockout matches of those competitions.
