India’s tour of Zimbabwe begins on Thursday and normally a series like this – sandwiched between a Caribbean tour and the Asia Cup – would fly well under the radar. But for KL Rahul and Deepak Chahar, these three ODIs could have an enormous amount of significance.
Both players are coming back from long-term injury but there is no time to ease in. India are preparing for two massive tournaments – the Asia Cup which starts on August 27 and the T20 World Cup on October 16. Rahul and Chahar need to be at their best. And if they’re not, there are plenty of players waiting in the fringes. A simple representation of that is how Chahar, who was once a first-choice pick as a new-ball bowler in T20 internationals, is now only among the reserves that India are taking to the Asia Cup.
Rahul, of course, remains in first-eleven contention. And it was here in Zimbabwe, back in 2016, that he began the journey from red-ball specialist to all-format superstar. He had followed a breakout IPL season for Royal Challengers Bangalore with a century on ODI debut.
Six years later, as he returns to the country of his white-ball emergence, Rahul is India captain of a second-string squad. His match fitness will be under much focus, given he is returning from surgery and extensive injury management for a sports hernia followed by a bout of Covid-19.
There will also be interest in the role he plays in the ODI setup. In T20Is, it’s amply clear that Rahul will slot in at the top of the order. In ODIs, though, much of his recent success has been at No. 5, as a finisher, with the team management keen for more X-factor players down the order.
Rahul has taken to his new role well. At No. 5, he has averaged 56.62 in 10 innings and has struck them at 113.81. This includes a century and four fifties.
With India likely to persist with the prolific opening pair of Rohit Sharma and Shikhar Dhawan – and Shubman Gill‘s emergence as yet another back-up opener – Rahul’s batting position in Zimbabwe could offer a peek into the team management’s thinking going forward, given the next ODI World Cup is only a year or so away.
Like Rahul, Chahar is also returning to top-flight cricket after nearly seven months. He played his last cricket in February and will be auditioning in the 50-over format for a place on the T20I team, which may not be ideal but under the circumstances, it is the best-case scenario.
What was to be a six-week lay-off for a left quadricep injury has taken more than six months and multiple rehabilitation stints at the National Cricket Academy. It meant Chahar, the second-most expensive pick at the IPL 2022 auction, missed the entire season for Chennai Super Kings.
The timing of the injury coincided with Chahar’s rise as an allrounder. In his last three ODIs, Chahar showed his big-hitting exploits with match-turning knocks: 69* (against Sri Lanka), 54 (against South Africa) and 38 (against West Indies). With him at No. 8, India could afford to play several bowling combinations without compromising on batting depth.
This was certainly among the reasons why as many as four IPL teams – Delhi Capitals, Sunrisers Hyderabad, Rajasthan Royals and Super Kings – engaged in a bidding war for Chahar. Super Kings eventually signed him for INR 14 crore, reasoning that his skill as a swing bowler made him worth any cost.
And while that may be true, India already have someone performing that very role for them. Bhuvneshwar Kumar has overcome form and fitness issues himself to once again become a key member of the T20I bowling pack. Since 2021, Bhuvneshwar has picked up 32 wickets in 29 matches, with an economy rate of just 6.73. Seventeen of these wickets have come in the powerplay, where he has an economy rate of 5.75.
In his most-recent outing in England, Bhuvneshwar finished with a return of 6-1-25-4 in two games. This came on the back of impressive series against South Africa – six wickets in five games at an economy rate of 6.07 and best of 4 for 18. His pace, which had dropped, is back up.
Should Chahar impress upon his return to international cricket, India may find themselves facing another healthy selection dilemma.