Leading into the World Cup, there were concerns with the Indian middle order - it was not fixed, there was no certainty over the positions and it was brittle. The middle order muddle has been causing plenty of headaches to the selection committee and when India lost their semi-final clash to New Zealand, these questions came back to bite them.
Now, as per reports, the selection committee has made up its mind to revamp the middle order and opt for fresh faces to give them an extended run. This could also mean that it is the end of the road for the likes of Dinesh Karthik and Kedar Jadhav.
Over-the-hill players need to go
This comes as an extension of the policy which was put into place ever since MS Dhoni took over as the captain - the selectors try to build a team for any upcoming tournament almost two years in advance and with the World T20 slated to be held next year, the process could start right about now.
The selection committee, led by MSK Prasad, will be in charge till the BCCI elections are held but it has been reported that they will handle the transition phase keeping an eye on the shortest format.
As per PTI, 'over-the-hill' players like Dinesh Karthik and Kedar Jadhav could face the axe as the selectors would want to phase them out. Both these players have not had consistent returns despite being persisted with. Dinesh Karthik struggled in the Test series last year and despite this, was taken to England owing to his wicket-keeping skills. Also, Kedar Jadhav's inclusion in the lower order was baffling considering he was not used much as a bowler and there is a clear lack of a power game.
As things stand right now, the nucleus of this side is in place. Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma, Hardik Pandya, Jasprit Bumrah and Rishabh Pant will be the lynchpins of this side and with Chahal and Shami always in good nick, there are a couple of positions up for grabs. This is where the likes of Shreyas Iyer Iyer, Shubman Gill and Mayank Agarwal come into the fray.
"We are not shying away from accepting that we didn't stand up to the challenge and we were not good enough under pressure. We have to accept that and accept the failure as it shows on the scoreboard," Indian skipper Virat Kohli said after the match and now, is the time to start building a new middle order.
