India must surely rank among the favourites for the tournament. They are at home, they have a dazzling array of batting and have been in good form of late. The only reservations might be the pace bowling, which looks rather reliant on the excellent Zaheer Khan, the fielding, which can be somewhat erratic and how the side react to the pressure that will be brought to bear by a cricket mad public. That said, they are well lead by the increasingly authoritative MS Dhoni so seem better equipped than many of their predecessors to deal with the burden of expectation.
The batting, on paper, looks stunning. Yuvraj may not be quite the player that he once was, but Sehwag, Gautam Gambhir and, of course, the genius of Sachin Tendulkar should ensure some big totals, backed up by some startling lower order potential. The only risk might be if wickets fall early and expose a middle / lower order that is more suited to the last ten to fifteen overs rather too soon.
The bowling is significantly less strong, and may yet prove to be the Achilles heel. Zaheer is a superb one day bowler, but Sreesanth can be erratic (and bowl no balls) and Munaf Patel and Ashish Nehra shouldn’t cause too many sleepless nights for the batting. Among the spinners, Harnhajan is clearly the main man and remains a high quality operator without being quite the force that he once was. They have a lot of useful spin options, though, and these will be used extensively in helpful conditions. If this World Cup were being held in England then I would have significant reservations about the bowling but in the sub-continent it should hold up.
Much depends on: Sachin Tendulkar. It may seem obvious, but Tendulkar is revered in India (as a quick glance at the cricinfo comments section will reveal). If Tendulkar goes well, as he has been in the last couple of years, then he will not only help India to make match winning scores but will also buoy the nation. If he, and India, start slowly then it could increase the pressure to intolerable levels.
Verdict: Winners
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