The Indian middle order consists of some of the most amazing batsmen and who are adept at pacing the innings well. If the right-left combo of Rohit and Dhawan fails to fire then the opposition will have to contend with batsmen who are amongst the very best in the shortest format of the game. These are batsmen who have sharpened and honed their skills in the IPL and will be looking to avenge India’s loss in the ICC WT20 in Bangladesh.
Virat Kohli
Virat Kohli played a superb innings in the last WT20 final against the Sri Lankans but his innings was trumped by a sublime Kumar Sangakkara as India lost the final to their neighbours.
Virat has been in scintillating form down under as he has hit two half centuries and two Fantastico tons against the Australians. He is the most complete batsman and can play in an ultra-aggressive manner as well as reign himself in and play with control when required. The cover drives and on drives are something that flow and come naturally to this kid. He has a fabulous average of above 44 in T20 internationals with a strike rate of above 130 runs per hundred balls.
His aggression and passion on the field seems to lift India and he is a live wire in the field as well blocking shots that seem to be going away from him. He is a senior member of this side and him playing well will go a long way in how far India goes in the tournament.
Impact Rating – 8/10
Suresh Raina
Suresh Raina is the most consistent batsmen from the Indian Premier League and is probably the best Indian batsman in the shortest format of the game. He is just almost always in the zone when it comes to T20 matches. He has a very healthy average and strike rate in T20 internationals.
He has not been in form recently and has lost his place in the Indian side for the ODI’s against the Australians but he will be back for the T20 matches. It’s a format that he rarely fails in and he will look to provide some good performances to win the selectors confidence.
He is also an electric fielder and is not afraid to throw himself in the field. He is also a very under-rated off spinner but provides India with a breakthrough whenever needed.
Impact Rating – 8/10
The Indian duo of Virat and Raina are a perfect foil for each other as they have the capability to rotate the strike as well as explode and take off suddenly as and when the situation demands. Team India will be heavily dependent on these two to score heavily especially in run chases as they play well under pressure and can anchor the chase well.
This blog post is inspired by the blogging marathon hosted on IndiBlogger for the launch of the #Fantastico Zica from Tata Motors. You can apply for a test drive of the hatchback Zica today.
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