It’s been a story of dominant spin bowling in Dharamsala as India have established their dominance over England throughout the test series. By day two every one of India’s top five had managed to surpass 50, while only one of England’s batters passed 30, really demonstrating the gulf in quality between the hosts and the tourists.

Indeed, this summer’s T20 World Cup is a chance for England to retain their title following their win in Australia against Pakistan. A pulsating showdown in Melbourne saw Ben Stokes and co just edge it by five wickets. However, the highest altitude among all international venues in India is clearly playing into the host’s hands in the leadup to the tournament, and as the Three Lions prepare for the West Indies, they have found themselves unstuck against a side that is more than capable of going all the way.

A strong start

India are looking like a dominant force heading into the summer, and this workout against the English represents ideal preparation. Having hit the first 1000 runs of his career on day one, Yashasvi Jaiswal is in fine form and looks like a future star at just 22 years old and looks to spearhead a group that has all the making of champions thanks for their mentality.

When England veteran James Anderson tried to stare the youngster down, he kept his cool, even when experienced looked to have his number. Initially smashing him for 46 runs in 25 balls, Jaiswal hit five boundaries, en route to amassing 1000 runs in his career, 700 of which have arrived in the series against England and notched up his fourth career fifty.

The Fifth Test has also provided a chance for Shubman Gill to show his class and the Gujarat Titans captain wasted no time in giving the crowd some entertainment as he slammed Anderson for six to stun England captain Stokes. A 10/1 shot at man of the match, visit Gambling.com for the best IN gambling sites and you’ll see why India’s batsmen are some of the best in red ball cricket.  

Changing of the guard

India lost the 2023 World Cup to the Aussies but the T20 tournament is one where the Men in Blue will be firm favourites. Relentless form and a new wave of players means they are amongst the frontrunners, and under the new leadership of Rohit Sharma, who took over the captaincy in February this year, Jay Shah has been speaking confidently about his side’s chances under their new leadership model.

“We may have lost the final of World Cup 2023. But we won the hearts of everyone by winning 10 matches in a row. I am confident that India will lift the 2024 T20 World Cup under Rohit Sharma’s captaincy at Barbados,” said the BCCI secretary.

“Hardik Pandya will definitely be the vice-captain. When Hardik was injured in the World Cup, who else can we give the captaincy? In the third T20I against Afghanistan, India were 22/4 and the way Rohit Sharma took the team to 212/4, we can’t question much about him, right? He has the ability, as I said, we won ten games in the ODI World Cup. We didn’t win the final, but it’s part and parcel of the game. Whoever plays better, wins,”

Sharma has led by example throughout the series, and with an illustrious career spanning over a decade, he has established himself as one of the most prolific batsmen in the modern era. Notably, Sharma holds the record for the highest individual score in One Day Internationals (ODIs), with an astonishing 264 runs, and his second century of the series equalled Sunil Gavaskar’s record for most centuries for an Indian opener against England.

Devdutt’s debut

Alongside spin duo Kuldeep Yadav and Ravi Ashwin, who took nine wickets between them, India are seeing out the final test of the series in style, and this allowed 23-year-old Devdutt Padikkal to come on and make his debut. Despite a nervous start, Padikkal scored 65 off 103 balls, making the most of the chance presented to him by Rajat Patidar’s injury.

It’s another brilliant strategic decision made by the Indian team during the Test match, as they look to integrate as many young players as possible into the established squad ahead of the World Cup.

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Only time will tell just how far this India side can go. Outright favourites at 3/1 comes with a lot of pressure, with their first game against Ireland on June 5^th a great start to build some momentum ahead of some decisive fixtures against Pakistan, the USA, Canada, and Zimbabwe. Psychologically there will be a lot riding on the build-up to the tournament, but with three months still to go this is an experienced group, with sprinkles of youthful exuberance coming in to plug the gaps and cover injuries. It’s hard to look past anyone else in the West Indies.