Indian batting line-up too dependent on Shikhar Dhawan and Virat Kohli, says Mohinder Amarnath

The Men in Blue created history on Tuesday as they became the first Indian men’s team to win an ODI series in South Africa in the last 25 years. Virat Kohli and Co. defeated the Proteas in the fifth ODI by a margin of 73 runs to claim the series 4-1, with the back-in-form Rohit Sharma leading from the front (115 runs), after a disappointing outing in the Test series and the first four ODIs.

However, former Indian cricketer Mohinder Amarnath has issued a note of caution to the Indian team stating that a complacent middle-order, which is overly dependent on the likes of Dhawan, Sharma and Kohli, is not good for the team’s performance as a whole.

“The Indian middle order is still a bit of a worry for me. So far, they have not really come to terms with the opponents, and the worry is that if the top-order fails, then what will happen? They need to be more consistent so that they can take the responsibility on themselves, should the situation demand,” Amarnath wrote in his TOI column.

Amarnath, who has scored 4378 Test runs with 11 centuries for India, was relieved to see opener Rohit Sharma get back to his best as the Mumbai-born lad scored a ton in the fifth ODI to take India’s total to 274.

“One of the best things to come out of Tuesday’s game is Rohit Sharma’s knock. He seemed a different player. The aggression was there, and he didn’t shy away from hitting those short balls which were bothering him earlier on this tour. He is one of those players who can convert a start into big innings, and this was a crucial one as India needed someone in the top order to stand up. So far, it has been Virat or Shikhar Dhawan who have been the main pillars on this tour,” wrote Amarnath.

Amarnath was also quick to heap praise on the wrist-spinning duo of Yuzvendra Chahal and Kuldeep Yadav, who has been deadly throughout the series and have racked up an outstanding total of 29 wickets over five matches.

"Wrist spinners are a very important part of the team, especially overseas where wickets are not usually conducive to spin. These two boys, Kuldeep and Chahal, have done very well right through. It is their bowling that changed the complexion of the whole series, especially if you take into consideration the number of wickets they have taken and the time taken to pick them up,” wrote Amarnath, who was also a part of India’s World Cup-winning team of 1983.