The Indian national team has been enjoying unparalleled success in home conditions in recent months and years. The Test team in particular has been super dominant on home turf for a long time now, with an approximate win-loss ratio of around 3.60 since the year 2013. But have you ever wondered, what is the reason behind this dominance in home Test matches?
Well, there are actually various factors that have been contributing to the success of the Indian team at home, in the longest format. One of the most significant factors is the nature of the pitches and their preparation in the sub-continent. Indian cricket pitches are known to be slow, low and turning, great for spin bowling. Indian spinners thus are masters of exploiting such conditions.
Why is India almost unbeatable in home Tests?
Indian batsmen are adept at playing spin bowling, giving them a considerable advantage over visiting batters. Another reason for dominance in home conditions is the familiarity with these conditions. Having grown up playing on these pitches and in such conditions, they are well-versed with the nuances. They know how balls will behave on particular pitches, and adjust their game accordingly.
This gives them a psychological edge over visiting teams and their players who aren’t used to playing here. The Indian team’s record at home in the longest format has been aided by the fact that they always have a balanced and experienced squad. The team core has remained untouched for a long time, allowing the players to develop an understanding of each other’s games.
This in turn leads to translates good team chemistry and unity, essential for success in any team sport. Moreover, Team India team has a pool of talented spinners who can exploit turning pitches. Recently, India has produced several quality spin bowlers like Ravi Ashwin, Axar Patel, Ravindra Jadeja, and others. They’ve been instrumental in home successes, taking advantage of the conditions and picking wickets aplenty.
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India’s success has also been driven by former skipper Virat Kohli and the now captain, Rohit Sharma. Kohli is the best batsman in the world, recently getting 186 in the 4th Test against Australia (2023). He reads conditions well and makes the right decisions, also having a knack for picking the right bowlers based on the conditions; his experience helps Rohit lead the side better and get better results too.
Kohli and Rohit’s tactical acumen together, and their combined aggressive style of play have influenced the team as well, making them formidable at home. Another contributing factor is the quality of India’s domestic cricket system. There’s a huge pool of domestic cricketers, providing a steady stream of players who are ready to step up to the national team when called upon.
These domestic tournaments ensure players are exposed to a wide range of conditions, thus developing their skills at a young age itself. Team India thus always has a ready pool of talented players to choose from at any point, be it Tests or ODIs or T20Is. Finally, their home success is also attributed to the fan following. Cricket is like a religion in India, and these fans are super passionate about the sport in this country.
India in the last 42 home Tests:
Won – 34.
Lost – 2.
Drawn – 6.– Unreal dominance by India in Test cricket at home in last 10 years.
— Mufaddal Vohra (@mufaddal_vohra) February 4, 2023
Fans turn up in tens of thousands to support India, providing a boost to morale of the players. They create a hostile atmosphere for opponents too, which is intimidating for visitors. And despite these factors that contribute to the team’s success in India, there are many areas where they can improve too, one being their away performances. While India has been dominant at home, they’ve struggled overseas.
This is a concern that the management is surely aware of, addressing this issue by scheduling more overseas tours, thus giving players exposure to a unfamiliar conditions. India can also improve their batting against pacers. The batsmen are adept at playing spin, but they struggle against high-quality pace attacks. This has been evident in recent test tours against South Africa, New Zealand, and England too.
In conclusion, Team India’s home dominance can be attributed to nature of the pitches, familiarity of conditions, domestic cricket system, and the fan support, among others. However, if they work on their performances overseas, India will be a force to reckon with across conditions, cementing themselves as the greatest test team of all time. For more cricketing updates, stay tuned to ReadScoops.com…
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