A year ago, horrific images of Rishabh Pant’s car after the near-fatal crash sent shivers down everyone’s spine. The images of the luxury vehicle after collision with the divider were scary and the entire cricketing fraternity, and fans across the globe, prayed for the youngster’s well-being.
2023 was going to be a big year for the Indian cricket team with important assignments, including the World Cup, and it certainly didn’t get off to an ideal start as they lost services of their southpaw for an indefinite period. The following few days revolved around understanding the extent of injuries he sustained and one thing was clear that it was going to be a slow and long road ahead.
As Pant underwent surgery and took baby steps, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) went into a huddle to finalise the blueprint for the year ahead. New fitness parameters were introduced and the core group for 2023 World Cup, under captain Rohit Sharma and coach Rahul Dravid, was identified.
The ICC Trophy
That elusive ICC trophy was on everyone’s mind but before the October-November multi-nation event, another possible shot, at the World Test Championship, was in the offing.
A favourable outcome in the home Test series vs Australia and India had a real shot of making it to The Oval for the title clash. Wins in Nagpur and Delhi, on absolute rank-turners, gave India a 2-0 lead and a defeat in Indore meant they needed to draw the fourth Test in Ahmedabad, and hope New Zealand win their fixture vs Sri Lanka, to seal their final berth.
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There was a lot of criticism of the pitches used and desperation to qualify was evident in the nature of surfaces for first three Tests. India were tested but came out on top to seal the series 2-1 but there was damage done as Shreyas Iyer injured his back, which ruled him out of the IPL and the WTC final.
The Patient Route
Iyer and Jasprit Bumrah, who didn’t feature in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy and underwent back surgery in March, were reasons of a lot of concern in the World Cup year but the BCCI and NCA kept their eyes on the long-term goal and all efforts were directed to help them regain match fitness.
Very shortly after the India-Australia series, during an IPL fixture, KL Rahul was added to this casualty list after he injured his thigh and was ruled out for rest of the cash-rich league and the WTC final too.
The World Cup was still months away but genuine worry had gripped the BCCI and NCA corridors with regards to availability of these key players. Instead of a knee-jerk reaction, all stakeholders opted for the patient route and they were put on the long road to rehab before easing into the set-up.
After months of work and match simulations at the NCA, the trio were eased back into the setup and the squad took solid shape for the Asia Cup.
The Oval Blunder
But before the Asia Cup and World Cup preparations, disappointment was in store in the World Test Championship final vs Australia as India, after a debatable call to bench R Ashwin, fell short. The critics blasted the management for failing to read the conditions and putting on a lacklustre show in the title clash.
Even the SOS call to Ajinkya Rahane, who played flowy knocks in both innings, didn’t help as Australia, riding high on Travis Head’s 163 in the first innings, outplayed India by 209 runs to add another ICC title to their already packed cabinet.
There was disappointment, plenty of it, but focus was going to quickly shift to the World Cup and return of Bumrah for the Ireland T20Is came like a breath of fresh air. Appointed skipper for that series, the seamer bowled without any discomfort and looked ready for the longer grind of the 50-over format.
The Returns
When Bumrah was running in hard, KL and Shreyas were nearing match-fitness at the NCA and the skill-based camp in Bengaluru ahead of the Asia Cup was the perfect opportunity for the management to apply finishing touches.
Asian supremacy was restored after a dominant show in the final vs Sri Lanka and all eyes were now on the World Cup to end the title wait. A decade long wait for an ICC trophy.
A full-strength Indian team, which underwent a last-minute change when Ashwin replaced injured Axar Patel in the squad, assembled in Chennai for the tournament opener but they were dealt with an early blow.
Shubman Gill came down with dengue and was going to miss at least the first two clashes. Missing the in-form opener could have caused unrest in the best of camps but this Indian unit had a different vibe during the World Cup.
10-0…
From Chennai to Mumbai (venue of semi-final), they marched forward in rollicking fashion. Wins over formidable units like Australia, South Africa and New Zealand raised a lot of hopes as the Men in Blue failed to place a foot wrong for their first ten matches. Yes, there were concerns like Gill’s dengue and then Hardik Pandya’s injury which ruled him out of the tournament but the juggernaut rolled on.
Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli were on song with the bat and Mohammed Shami, who played only from the Dharamsala fixture vs New Zealand, made the ball talk like only he can. A stiff semi-finals challenge awaited vs New Zealand at Wankhede but batting supremacy meant there was no stopping this Indian team. A perfect 10-0 and here they were. In Ahmedabad for the title clash vs the mighty Aussies.
… and final heartbreak
India had a near-perfect campaign before the title clash but there was a lot of disappointment in store on November 19. An ordinary batting performance, largely due to a perfectly executed bowling effort by the Aussies on a sluggish pitch, meant India could score only 240. The bowlers had something to bowl at but it was that man Travis Head again who, after Pat Cummins, silenced the capacity crowd to add another World Cup title to Australia’s cabinet.
A very dejected and emotional Indian unit rushed back to the dressing room after the defeat, and the crestfallen faces didn’t make ideal viewing. 10-0 came on the back of clinical performances, lot of intent but the performance in the title clash just wasn’t enough to challenge the might of the Aussies.
Post the World Cup, action shifted to the T20Is vs Australia to begin preparations for another ICC title – the 2024 T20 World Cup. But those games didn’t matter much.
The Final Frontier
The real deal was going to be the two-Test series vs South Africa.
Will they breach the final frontier? Does India have what it takes to win in South Africa? Is it the best chance to win a series there?
A jumbo contingent picked by Ajit Agarkar and Co. was assembled to prepare for the stiff challenge and coach Rahul Dravid was given a contract extension to ensure some sort of continuity for these crucial assignments. There was success in the white-ball leg but more disappointment was in store when an absolutely pathetic display in the Boxing Day Test saw India taste an innings defeat inside three days.
For years, batting has been the real problem on tours to South Africa but this time even the bowling was very ordinary. Jasprit Bumrah, returning to whites after more than a year, was the only impressive seamer as others leaked plenty of runs, lacked control and bowled without any plan.
Result: SA managed 408 in their first innings and India could only muster 245 and 131 in their two innings. Except KL Rahul’s hundred and Kohli’s impressive knocks, the batting looked completely out of sorts and they have very little time to pull up their socks ahead of the second Test.
The year 2023 was a mixed bag for Team India and the frustration of falling short in ICC events continued. 2024 is going to be another crucial year as there is a T20 World Cup and important assignments in the WTC cycle.
Ahead of the fresh challenge, a piece of good news is that Pant is nearing match fitness and is likely to be in the field for Delhi Capitals during the Indian Premier League. This could well address some of India’s problems across formats as the transition has well and truly begun, and Pant could be a crucial piece to the puzzle.
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