Three reasons behind India's ODI bowling issues as World Cup 2027 approaches
India's bowling in One-Day Internationals has struggled during the India vs West Indies 2026 matches as the side prepares for the ICC Cricket World Cup 2027. The team is using this period to test different players and combinations, but bowling remains an area with outstanding questions.
India have been experimenting with personnel and line-ups while Shubman Gill has been doing well as India’s ODI captain; senior batters Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma continue to be an important part of the team and several young players are being given opportunities. Selection has been affected by injuries, workload management and attempts to find the right combinations, and India’s bowling coach Morne Morkel has spoken about the need to give different bowlers opportunities before the World Cup.
One major problem has been the absence of key bowlers. Jasprit Bumrah remains an important part of India’s plans, but his availability has not always been consistent, and other frontline bowlers have missed matches because of injuries or workload management. Those absences have forced regular changes to the bowling attack, limiting the time available for players to settle into defined roles and develop cohesion as a unit.
A second issue is adapting to varied playing conditions. ODI cricket is staged across different countries and pitches can provide swing and movement, bounce, or assistance for spinners, requiring bowlers to alter plans according to the surface and match situation. Reliance on a single plan is not sufficient when conditions differ from venue to venue.
A third challenge is the lack of a settled bowling combination. India possess multiple options in both pace and spin, but finding the right balance has been difficult and selection must also account for batting depth. Choosing extra all-rounders increases batting options but can reduce the number of specialist bowlers, while picking more specialists can weaken batting depth.
Jasprit Bumrah is one of India’s most important ODI bowling options because of his experience and ability to bowl in different phases of an innings. The final combination will depend on the pitch, opposition and conditions, and India can mix specialist bowlers with all-rounders to create different options.
With the 2027 World Cup still ahead, India retain time to address these problems; the coming ODI matches will be important for testing different players and combinations.