Dhoni admits to bowling worries

The defeat at the hands of Pakistan in Monday’s warm-up match, in which India failed to defend a total of 185, has come as a timely warning for India and skipper MS Dhoni admitted bowling was an area of concern for the team.

“Bowling has always been a bit of a concern,” pointed out Dhoni after Tuesday’s practice session here.

“If you compare our batting to our bowling, we find the bowling is slightly weaker but still we have got experienced bowlers who can do the needful along with the part-timers. We are looking to play with seven batsmen to start off the tournament.

It means that the part-timers will have to do a really good job so that we can sustain with those seven batsmen as the tournament progresses. If we still find that our bowling line-up is a bit weak, we will have to go with six batters and five bowlers,” he explained.

But Dhoni maintained that his ideal T20 attack would consist of three fast bowlers, one spinner and a few part-timers. “(But) it depends on the wicket, what kind of part-timers suit the role and where you are playing.

“If you are playing in India on slow wickets, the part-timers get into the role really well. It’s a bit different compared to that. It depends how exactly the wicket is behaving and even in Sri Lanka, depending on different venues, the attacks will be very different,” he remarked.

Bowling at the death too has been a long-standing problem which was once again exposed against Pakistan. “We have done well in the death bowling also but we have not been very consistent. It is a bit of a worry but the fast bowlers are putting in a bit more effort to get into the groove. In this format, if you have the variation, you can go all out and still do well. I think the bowlers will shape up well. They will try different strategies and different field settings so that it can complement their style of bowling,” he offered.

The skipper was also happy with the preparation of the team.

“I think we are going good. Yes, we won and lost one, but overall it gave some exposure to some of our bowlers as to what needs  to be done. The batting order also – the first game if you see, it was a partnership between me and Rohit that brought us back into the game but it was good to see the way the batsmen batted in the second warm-up game.

Also, at the same time, we don’t rate any side lightly, be it Afghanistan or any other side. This is a format where anyone can beat any other side in the world so it is important to be focused, not be overconfident and get the most out of the game.”