Virat Kohli's Team India are on a mission to conquer the world. But before they go overseas and take on the world, India will be taking on New Zealand in a three-match ODI and three-match T20 series, starting October 22.
India, who are traditionally known for the batting prowess, have seen so much success for the past year or so because of bowling armoury at their disposal.
Bharat Arun, India's bowling coach, feels that the biggest challenge ahead for the team is going to be able to maintain the consistency and for that they need to have a strong pool of bowlers.
"This Indian team is blessed with bowlers who are so versatile. The biggest challenge would be to make them perform time and again to maintain the level of consistency. For that I need to create a pool of players, all of whom can come in anytime and do their job," Arun said to India Today.
Arun went on to praise Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Jasprit Bumrah for their death bowling skills and said that all he does is giving them the right feedback that helps them work themselves better.
Arun cleared that the team management is not ignoring Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja but instead they are looking to give Kuldeep Yadav and Yuzvendra Chahal a "fair run" before deciding on combinations for the 2019 World Cup.
Specifically on Kuldeep, Arun said that even though Kuldeep is extremely talented, the biggest challenge for him is going to be able to constantly evolve.
Hardik Pandya has recently taken centre stage and captain Kohli has twice called him the most important takeaway from the series in Sri Lanka and ODIs against Australia. The team management is clearly looking for a valuable seam-bowling all-rounder in Pandya -- one who can be of immense importance in overseas tours.
Arun attributes the happy atmosphere in the dressing room to the "honesty and fearlessness" in the team and the combination of Ravi Shastri and Kohli that has worked for the team.
"The fact Ravi and I worked with the team for two years was extremely helpful. We know all the players, we have worked with them, we understand them and so, it made everything a lot easier.
"Ravi is someone who brings in a lot of positivity to the team. He is someone who gives the players a lot of confidence, he is a great motivator. It is a combination that has worked well, it is a happy dressing room. Honesty and fearlessness are the two factors that drive this team," Arun concluded.
