Adelaide: Captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni on Tuesday left the question on Indian bowling combination for the World Cup beginning Saturday unanswered, saying the team will take a decision depending on the conditions.
“We’ll have to wait and watch, depending on conditions and the kind of wickets offered,” Dhoni said when asked about the combination of bowlers to be used at the World Cup.
“I wanted Ravindra Jadeja and R Ashwin to bowl their 10 overs, but I just wanted to use five bowlers in this game, and I needed Suresh Raina,” Dhoni said after his side crushed minnows Afghanistan by 153 runs in their second and final warm-up match in which he used six bowlers.
He expressed happiness that his batsmen and bowlers did well in their last game ahead of the World Cup grind.
“Overall, it has been quite a good match. We had big partnerships while batting with Rohit, Raina and Rahane coming good. In bowling also, after 4-5 overs we bowled really well and also got some reverse swing,” said Dhoni.
Asked about his own form with the bat, Dhoni said, “I’m not a big fan of practice games, but a bit more time in the middle does help.”
About Ajinkya Rahane who scored 88 not out from 61 deliveries, he said, “Rahane is crucial for us. If you see the history of Indian ODI cricket, number five has been really crucial.”
Off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin said. “Leg-breaks are a part of what I’m doing. You can’t be one-dimensional. Five fielders in the circle, people have to accept it.”
Talking about Ravindra Jadeja who took two wickets and scored 11 not, he said, “It’s heartening to see Jadeja bowling 10 overs, and he’s also batting well. He’s been bowling and batting a lot at the nets.” (PTI)
