Jab bade bade surma rest par hon, tab asli depth ka pata chalta hai. No Virat Kohli, no Jasprit Bumrah, no Hardik Pandya, lekin India ki sehat par koi asar nahi. Shubman Gill ki captaincy me young brigade ne Afghanistan ko unki aukaat dikha di hai. Series pehle hi pocket me hai, aur ab baari hai whitewash ki. Chennai ke Chepauk me India vs Afghanistan ka teesra ODI sirf ek match nahi, balki Team India ki agni pariksha ka final chapter hai.
The Guru Story
Doston, Lucknow ki garmi me Ishan Kishan ne jo 125 runs ki innings kheli hai, usne selectors ko ek kadwa sach bata diya hai: You cannot keep him out for long. Wahan Shubman Gill ne 154 runs thok kar ye saaf kar diya hai ki unhe "Prince" kyun kaha jata hai. Captaincy ka pressure? Woh toh Shubman Gill ke liye nashte jaisa hai. Udhar bowling me Gurnoor Brar ne apni speed aur bounce se Afghanistan ke batters ko dance karwaya hai. Do matches me 6 wickets, ye koi fluke nahi hai, ye pure talent ka Masterclass hai.
Afghanistan ki team filhal ICU me lag rahi hai. Mohammad Nabi viral infection ki wajah se bahar hain, aur Azmatullah Omarzai chotil. Sirf Rashid Khan ke bharose kab tak ladoge? Rahmanullah Gurbaz ko chhod dein toh baaki batting line-up kisi gully cricket team jaisi brittle lag rahi hai. Chennai ki red-soil pitch par extra bounce hoga, aur agar Nitish Kumar Reddy ya Harshit Rana ko mauka mila, toh Afghanistan ke liye 150 runs banana bhi pahad jaisa mushkil hoga.
Ek aur interesting baat ye hai ki Yashasvi Jaiswal ko abhi bhi apna ODI footprint chhodna baki hai. Vizag me South Africa ke khilaaf 116 maarne wala ye ladka pichle match me saste me nipat gaya tha. Chennai me unke paas 2027 ODI World Cup ke liye apni davedari pakki karne ka golden chance hai. Assistant coach Ryan ten Doeschate ne pehle hi ishara kar diya hai ki experimentation jari rahega. Matlab Kuldeep Yadav ko rest dekar Harsh Dubey ko ek aur chance mil sakta hai.
Analysis & Numbers
- Gurnoor Brar is now only the second Indian bowler after Piyush Chawla to take 3+ wickets in each of his first two ODIs.
- Ishan Kishan ka strike rate 107.69 hai, jo India ke liye teesra sabse zyada hai, only behind Yusuf Pathan and Hardik Pandya.
- Since the 2023 World Cup, Afghanistan ka run rate top-10 teams me second-worst hai, jo unki batting ki pol kholta hai.
- India has never lost an ODI to Afghanistan: 6 matches, 5 wins, 1 tie.
The Guru Gyan Verdict:
Seedhi baat no bakwas: This is a mismatch. India ki C-team bhi is Afghanistan side ko harane ka dum rakhti hai. Agar Rashid Khan ne koi chamatkar nahi kiya, toh Chennai me 3-0 ka whitewash tay hai. Indian youngsters ke paas ye mauka hai khud ko bench se uthakar main squad me fit karne ka. Afghanistan ko agar ijjat bachani hai toh unhe boundary balls rokni hogi aur Gurbaz ko ek 'Daddy Hundred' lagana hoga, jo filhal namumkin lag raha hai.
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