Dubai [UAE], March 1 : India's assistant coach Ryan ten Doeschate acknowledged that they didn't expect 'over-reliance' on spin in the ongoing Champions Trophy. He also addressed the minimal probability of 300-plus scores on the Dubai strip and how the management operates within the Indian setup.
India spinners have been the vanguard of India's bowling attack in the first two group-stage games. In the campaign opener against Bangladesh, Mohammed Shami led the ambush against Bangladesh batters with his five-wicket haul, but spinners remained the silent guardians.
Axar Patel had two scalps to his name, while Ravindra Jadeja and Kuldeep Yadav kept the run flow in check by maintaining their economy under 5.00.
In the high-voltage clash between India and Pakistan, the spinners kept the defending champions at bay and struck at crucial junctures. 'Chinaman' spinner Kuldeep remained a puzzle that Pakistan's star-studded line-up had no answer to. He returned with figures of 3/40 while the duo kept things silent during the middle overs.
"Yes, I think so. Now, there are four spinners as well, so it could be a contest of spin. I think that coming into the competition, we weren't expecting such an over-reliance on spin, but the guys have bowled nicely, and the pitch has helped a little bit. So I'm sure it's going to be the same for the next game in two days' time," Ryan said on the impact of spinners while speaking to reporters.
Unlike Pakistan's venues, Dubai's turf hasn't been helpful to batters. While Pakistan has hosted numerous 300-plus-score matches, a total of around 270 has been the go-to figure in Dubai. Ryan expects the trend to continue in Dubai and sees a score around 280-290 as the ideal fit for the surface.
"Look, I won't say it's difficult. I think we've become used to a standard where you score 320 without thinking too much about it. So, getting to 320 has been difficult. The pitch played slightly differently, in our opinion, in those two games. But there are probably like 280-290 pitches if you bat it really well. So, in the bigger picture, it's not like playing in Pakistan, where you expect to get 320-330. But you've got to adapt yourself and get a score that's good on these wickets, and we think it's around about 280-290, judging on the first two pitches," he added.
Ryan has been a part of head coach Gautam Gambhir's regime since the new era dawned on Indian cricket. The former Dutch cricketer has been part of the topsy-turvy journey from India's T20I dominance to a shambolic ODI series and back-to-back defeats against New Zealand and Australia in the Test format.
After a turbulent year, Ryan shared his experience of working in the Indian setup and believes "progression" is truly in place.
"Yeah, I think progression is probably the keyword there. You come into a new environment, and you need to earn the players' respect and the players' trust. That does take a bit of time. I think it certainly helps when you're winning as well. Players are a lot more open to listening to you and listening to new ideas. And I think it's going in the right direction now," he said.
"I think you've got a lot of experienced players there. So you've got to choose your words very carefully. You've got to know what you're talking about. And it's obviously got to be in their interest and the interest of Indian cricket. So it's a continual work on. You can't go there with rubbish. Like I said, I think it's working pretty well, and as a coaching group, we're getting better at it," he added.
Batting coach Sitanshu Kotak became Gambir's latest recruit after the Border-Gavaskar Trophy debacle. Ryan shed light on how the management operates and splits the workload.
"Obviously, with Kotak coming in now, he's taking care of the batting. So, between the five of us, we're just trying to disseminate the same message. I think consistency in the messaging, I think we're very clear as a team on how we want to play. It's just making sure the messaging is consistent and the players are striving towards the same thing all the time. Between the five of us," he said.