India scored 249 and still lost. Here's why
India made 249 in Ranchi and West Indies chased it down with nine balls to spare, Shai Hope hitting a 45-ball hundred. What India's T20 defeats since the World Cup have in common, and what the fix might be before a World Cup in Australia and New Zealand.
Key points
- West Indies were 5 for 2 before Shai Hope's 45-ball hundred: the second-highest chase in T20I history.
- Since becoming the first team to defend the T20 World Cup, India lost 2-0 in Ireland and 4-0 in England, including 76 all out at Trent Bridge.
- The losses came where the ball swung and seamed (Belfast, Nottingham, Southampton) or on a flat, dewy pitch without Bumrah, who played in none of the seven defeats.
- The question: another strike bowler, a batter for the moving ball, or fewer flat pitches?
Read the transcript
India scored 249 in Ranchi and lost. West Indies were five for two, then came Shai Hope: a hundred off 45 balls, the second-highest chase in T20 International history. Rewind seven months: India, world champions, the first team ever to defend the title. Then it all fell apart.
Ireland beat them 2-0, and a streak of 16 series wins was gone. England, 4-0. At Trent Bridge, all out for 76, India's biggest T20 defeat. Seven tosses won, not one match.
And then 10 wins in a row, but against Zimbabwe, Afghanistan, and then Asian Games gold, beating Pakistan. Then a captain's hundred in Lucknow. So which India is the real one? Look where they've lost: Belfast, Nottingham, Southampton.
The ball swung, the ball seamed, and a batting order raised on flat pitches had no second gear. And Ranchi: same problem, other end. A flat pitch, heavy dew, three front-line bowlers going for 161, and no Bumrah. Seven defeats since the World Cup; he played in none of them.
Flat pitches don't spoil batters; they leave bowlers nowhere to hide. The next World Cup is in Australia and New Zealand. So what's the fix? Another strike bowler, a batter for the moving ball, or fewer flat pitches?
You tell me.
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