India one of the favourites for World Cup with talented bowlers, asserts Michael Clarke
After their ODI series win in Australia, Michael Clarke has mentioned that the Indian team is one of the favourites for the upcoming Cricket World Cup to be held in England. The former Aussie skipper also referred Virat Kohli is the greatest batsman in One-day international cricket.
India had a very successful tour of Australia where they managed to win the Test and ODI series after drawing levels in the T20Is. The team led by Kohli had an amazing outing in the Test matches as India registered first ever series win in Australia in the history of Test cricket. The Men in Blue also managed to win the first bilateral series Down Under by winning it 2-1.
Talking about the Indian bowling combination that did extremely well in both Tests and the ODIs, Clarke has said that the talented bowlers would keep India one of the favourites for the World Cup.Â
“Certainly one of the favourites with the kind of bowling talent India have at the moment. The batting was always strong and they also have wonderful young spinners. Jasprit Bumrah is a
“England is a very good ODI side and will be hard to beat at home. Also, I would like Australia to be in the mix. Australia will get better when the frontline pacers including Nathan Coulter Nile come back.”
The Indian captain, who has 10385 runs in 219 ODIs so far, scored a hundred in the second ODI to take India to a win in a do or die match. Meanwhile, Clarke has heaped praise on Kohli saying that he is the greatest batsman in ODI cricket.
“To me, Virat Kohli is the greatest batsman to have ever played one-day cricket. I have no doubts after seeing what he has achieved for India, the former Aussie captain said.Â
“You have to respect Virat’s passion to win games for his country. Yes, he has aggression but no one can question his commitment, how much he has achieved. He is the greatest in ODIs.”Â
Mahendra Singh Dhoni was adjudged Man of the Series for his three half-centuries in three games as he played crucial roles in India’s victory in the second and third ODIs. And Clarke has asserted that Dhoni has been someone who has always played according to the situation of the game and his experience of 300 ODIs would be important in this regard.Â
“MS knows how to react to any given situation. He has played 300 plus ODIs so he knows how to go about his job. I think he would have played differently. It was 230 and he had a particular strategy and it would have been different if the target would have been bigger. Look at his approach in the second game in Adelaide and the third game in Melbourne. It was different.”Â
Asked about Dhoni’s batting position in the World Cup, Clarke replied, “Any position 4, 5 or 6. He is good enough to bat at any position and I believe Virat will use him accordingly.”