India captain Shubman Gill urged his team to improve their death bowling and fielding ahead of the 2027 World Cup after a record run-chase by West Indies took the gloss off a 2-1 one-day international series victory.
Shai Hope’s unbeaten 162 powered the visitors to victory in the third ODI in Mullanpur, where Gill questioned India’s bowling plans in the closing overs and rued missed chances in the field.
“I feel sometimes we are not really clear whether we are attacking or we are defending, especially while bowling during death overs,” Gill said.
While reasonably pleased with India’s progress, Gill said dropped catches had disrupted the team’s momentum and made the bowlers’ task harder on a surface offering little assistance.
“We dropped around 3-4 catches, which breaks the momentum of the team,” he said.
“Fielding hasn’t been up to the mark, we were sloppy on the field, these are the areas we need to get better leading to the World Cup.”
India tested their squad depth throughout the batting-friendly series but were unable to field their preferred combination, with Jasprit Bumrah on Asian Games duty and all-rounder Hardik Pandya still recovering from injury.
Mohammed Siraj played only one of the three matches, leaving India heavily reliant on their reserve bowling options.
Gill said there was little time left to experiment before the World Cup and hoped to have his preferred line-up available for India’s next assignment.
“Hopefully the combination that we want to play (for the World Cup) is available for the next series,” he said.
Debutant Anshul Kamboj, Gurnoor Brar and off-spinner Naman Dhir handled the final 10 overs in Mullanpur as India assessed their options under pressure.
Gill identified Kamboj and Auqib Nabi as candidates for the number eight position, stressing the need for a bowler who could also contribute with the bat.
“We don’t know who will be fit at the World Cup, we wanted someone who can bowl and bat a bit at 8, Anshul can do the job even Auqib (Nabi) can do the job,” he said.
“We wanted to see which players can deliver under pressure and if they can get some experience.”
Ravindra Jadeja was rested to give other players opportunities, with Gill saying the choice of all-rounders would depend on how their skills suited South African conditions.
“Keeping the World Cup and its conditions in mind, whoever offers the most value with their skillsets will make the squad,” he said. India’s next ODI assignment is a five-match series against New Zealand.
