Asia Cup 2022 Preview: What to expect from the Men in Blue

In less than 48 hours, Team India will be back in action as they begin their journey in Asia Cup 2022 with a battle against their arch-rivals Pakistan. The Men in Blue have not known defeat in the tournament since 2016 and Rohit Sharma's men would be hoping to extend their unbeaten streak further in the prolonged history of the fray.

With Jasprit Bumrah and Harshal Patel taken out of the equation due to injuries, India will have to heavily bank upon the returning Bhuvneshwar Kumar who showed some fiery form in Ireland, England, and West Indies.

Despite the absence of two of their primary fast bowlers, India will be pinning their hopes on a heavily bedecked batting order featuring the trifecta of Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, and KL Rahul. Here’s a quick look at India’s best wagers in the tournament and what can be the potential game-changers for the Men in Blue.

The batting unit will be the real deal:

Needless to say, the kind of batting that Team India will be coming into this tournament with makes them an almost untenable force. The hefty troika of KL Rahul, Rohit Sharma, and Virat Kohli will be spearheading the battery with the willow while the following likes of Suryakumar Yadav, Hardik Pandya, Rishabh Pant, and Ravindra Jadeja impart some steady depth to the batting unit. To cap off India’s prolonged pecking order, Dinesh Karthik will be primed to finish things off with a flourish.

Possible areas of concern:

The solitary spot of bother for Team India can be the dearth of experience in their fast bowling unit. Despite Bhuvneshwar Kumar leading the line-up for the Men in Blue, the other quicks lack the experience at the bigger stages that will have to be very carefully managed by Rohit Sharma.

X-Factor:

Hardik Pandya can be a crucial element of the Indian team given his recent form and a seismic shift in his fortunes ever since his return to the national side. He has also been producing decent bowling spells that will make him a priceless asset to lend the right balance to the team.

Gamechangers:

Despite lacking experience at the bigger stages, the Indian bowling unit will be featuring a string of significant monikers. Arshdeep Singh has been a bugbear for the batters in the death overs while Yuzvendra Chahal has produced wickets at crucial stages of the game. The surfaces of Dubai and Sharjah aren’t particularly conducive for the batters. The games played in recent times have shown the run-rate dropping significantly in the middle overs, owing to some decent spin. The pair of Chahal and Jadeja can make crucial inroads in those important overs while Bhuvi and Arshdeep take care of the death overs.