Virat Kohli’s artistic sixes against Pakistan brought fans from Kashmir to Kanyakumari together in an otherwise disappointing year for Indian cricket. The year began with the promise of change but ended with the beginning of another difficult transition period. In 2022, Indian cricket was, to put it mildly, a mess on and off the field most of the time.
The IPL media rights deal, worth Rs 48,000 crore, was the only thing that saved the day. It shows how market forces want the cricket ecosystem to be. Yet, on the field, it was an adventure of frustrating outcomes basically for the men.
It began with a defeat in the Test series in South Africa, which caused Virat Kohli to resign as captain of the longest format.
After being fired from his position as ODI captain, he wanted to leave on his own terms, which resulted in a strained relationship with the high-ranking BCCI officials.
It took place in January, and as the year comes to a close, Rohit Sharma, Kohli’s illustrious heir, is also removed from the national T20 captaincy.
As Rohit paid the price for another semi-final exit in the T20 World Cup following defeat against England, Hardik Pandya assumed leadership of the national T20 team in an anticipated change of guard.
In point of fact, it is the England team that, across all formats, is rewriting the rules of cricket with an astonishingly aggressive strategy known as “Bazball,” a name that, along with the golden generation of English players led by Jos Buttler and Ben Stokes, is set to become a cult in the years to come.
They played cricket in such a fun way that the Indian team’s “ideas cupboard” looked empty.
The Indian group looked great during bilaterals yet came a cropper on worldwide occasions.
Virat Kohli’s 71st and 72nd international hundreds in dead rubbers against Afghanistan (T20) and Bangladesh (ODI) lacked currency because some of the bilateral series lacked context.
The archaic approach of India’s senior batters, including skipper Rohit and KL Rahul, stood out like a sore thumb during the T20 World Cup, despite Kohli’s straight six off Haris Rauf and his 82-run score.
It was also pointed out that head coach Rahul Dravid’s decision-making has been poor.
Dravid never managed to actually persuade anyone that he is a shrewd tactician, whether it was by rushing a half-fit Jasprit Bumrah for a T20 series against Australia that aggravated his lower back stress fracture, by not considering using wrist spinner Yuzvendra Chahal at the global event, or by dropping a performer like left-arm wrist spinner Kuldeep Yadav from a Test after a match-winning
Even though he was the only member of the top three who had attempted to adapt his game to the demands of contemporary white-ball cricket, Rohit’s decline in batting form also became a problem.
KL Rahul was the most disappointing of the bunch, and by the end of the year, it was clear that the panel led by Chetan Sharma’s wish to see a potential national leader in him had failed as he lost his T20 vice-captaincy to Suryakumar Yadav and his ODI deputy position to Hardik Pandya.
Some of the positive signs included Shreyas Iyer’s consistent run in Tests and ODIs, Rishabh Pant’s rise to prominence as the current team’s most prolific game-changer in Test matches, and Jammu’s tearaway quick Umran Malik’s admission into the collective conscience.
A positive sign for the future was Shubman Gill realizing his potential at the highest level and Ishan Kishan displaying his phenomenal talent.
Ishant Sharma and Wriddhiman Saha, two disciplined players who had distinguished themselves on the national team before being informed that their time was up and that Indian cricket was past them, both left their international careers this year.
The same goes for Shikhar Dhawan, a popular one-day international player who has been shown the exit door. Another comeback doesn’t seem likely at 37.
After the team’s poor performance at the T20 World Cup, the BCCI fired Chetan Sharma’s selection committee for lack of foresight.
However, if he is not reappointed as chairman once more, Chetan may be seen working as a selector in 2023, possibly under a well-known Karnataka seamstress.
Mithali Raj and Jhulan Goswami, two women’s cricket players who established a standard for the sport and gained admiration for the national team on the international stage, ended their respective glorious careers.
While there are various players who could make up for Mithali’s shortcomings, finding Jhulan’s substitution will be troublesome assuming the exhibition of the group under Harmanpreet Kaur is a sign.
Shikha Pandey’s return to international cricket after 15 months is evidence that none of the other players, with the exception of Renuka Singh Thakur, appear ready for international cricket.
A bitter taste remained in the mouth when Ramesh Powar was let go once more due to disagreements with the team’s star senior player.
Despite the Supreme Court’s approval of his extension as President, the former captain Sourav Ganguly’s administrative tenure at the BCCI ended in bitter circumstances.
According to BCCI insiders, Roger Binny, the new chief, has remained more of a “quiet contributor” during his two months in office.
In order for the class of 2023 to sing in unison, “It’s coming Home,” the World Cup hero from 1983 may need to make more measurable contributions off the field by 2023.