March 2022 was an important month for Indian cricket as they played Sri Lanka in a Test Match series. Tests against Sri Lanka are always good games but there was added significance for the India team coming into this series due to some changes in the set-up. Continue below as we look more closely at those changes and how the current India cricket team compares to teams of the past.
The major change to the current India team is the captain and Rohit Sharma is the new man leading the team on the pitch. Sharma takes over from Virat Kohli, who recently played his 100th Test for India in a comprehensive win over Sri Lanka at the Punjab Cricket Association IS Bindra Stadium, Mohali.
In the first Test against Sri Lanka, India won the toss and chose to bat. Little did they know it would be the only time they would bat in the match as India scored 574 runs, with Ravindra Jadeja finishing on 175 not out. Sri Lanka could not cope with the India bowling attack and were all out for 174 in their first innings and 179 in their second innings having been forced to follow on. Much like the Indian innings, it was Jadeja who was the star man with the ball for India, taking 9 wickets in the match.
On to the second Test and India won by 238 runs but significantly, it was a new man who stole the show as Shreyas Iyer top scored for India in both innings. Iyer had previously scored a century and fifty on Test debut against New Zealand and has backed that up with 92 and 67 runs against Sri Lanka in the second Test.
With the likes of Ajinkya Rahane, Cheteshwar Pujara, Ishant Sharma and Wriddhiman Saha all left out of the current India squad, this looks like a new era for the team. However, this team have a lot to live up to as recent India teams have been reaching the later stages of big competitions. India were runners-up in the 2019/21 World Test Championship, runners-up in the 2017 ICC Champions Trophy, an event they won in 2013, and semi-finalist in the 2019 Cricket World Cup. There was disappointment at the 2021 ICC T20 World Cup as India were eliminated in the group stage but they have been highly competitive in all forms of cricket, winning or reaching the semi-final of every competition over the past decade.
So, although it is early days for the current India cricket team, they have a big act to follow. The fact Kohli will go down in history as the most successful India cricket captain tells you everything you need to know about the recent team. So, the current set-up have a long way to go to match the quality of the previous era but if you think they have what it takes to succeed, check out the betting options at www.betting-sites.in. You will find reviews of the leading sportsbooks in India and can select which you would like to use to back the India cricket team.
