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Former India bowling coach Venkatesh Prasad warned that the Indian batters could encounter serious challenge early in their innings if Australian left-arm paceman Mitchell Starc makes early breakthroughs with the new ball in the ODI World Cup 2023 final.
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India will square off against Australia in the ODI World Cup's summit clash at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad on Sunday, November 19. During their league-stage encounter in Chennai, Australia's pace attack, spearheaded by Josh Hazlewood and Mitchell Starc, had India reeling at 2/3. However, the hosts staged a remarkable comeback, securing a comprehensive six-wicket victory while chasing a modest target of 199.
In the semi-finals, Australia's new-ball pair of Hazlewood and Starc once again wreaked havoc, reducing the in-form South African batting lineup to 8/2 and later to 22/4. Mitchell Starc emerged as the standout bowler, claiming figures of 3/34 in his ten overs, while Josh Hazlewood displayed exceptional control, finishing with figures of 2/12 in his eight overs, including three maidens.
In an interview on News 18, Venkatesh Prasad acknowledged the potential threat posed by Australia's pace attack in the World Cup final. He said,“100 per cent, I think they have got all the areas covered. They do have the bowling attack. They have a left-arm seamer in Starc. If he gets a couple of wickets early, in the first 10 overs, it’s going to be really challenging for the Indian batting lineup.”
“They have Josh Hazlewood, who pretty much bowls those Test match lines and lengths, just hit the back of length, and because of his height, he gets that extra bit of bounce as well. Not express pace – probably high 130s I would say. Pat Cummins, with his experience, change of pace and variations, is also a handful,” he added.
Venkatesh also said that Adam Zampa needs to up his game. “Zampa needs to be more effective. In the last game when they played against South Africa in the semi-finals, he was not quite effective. He was not able to bowl the ball in the right areas. He is not a Shane Warne, who could turn the ball from middle and leg to the off-stump,” the 54-year-old said.
Former Indian pacer also observed that Australian spinner failed to make an impact on the spin-friendly surface during the semi-final match against South Africa. “He was trying to cut down on the runs I suppose, being defensive instead of showing an intent of taking wickets. He went wicketless on a rank turner, I would say, in the second semi-final, he needs to really put up a better show and needs to come up with a couple of wickets,” he concluded.
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