Takeaways: Spin weaknesses, maximising bowling potential and more

Gautam Gambhir's tenure as India's head coach which began with a three-nil series win in the T20I leg, ended with a winless run in the ODIs on Wednesday in Colombo. With the Champions Trophy set to be played in six months, the Indian team has already adopted shades of Gambhir's methods. Here's a look at some of the key takeaways from Gambhir's maiden tour as India's coach - his methods, the result of the trials with some of the players who had come in place of the rested trio of Jasprit Bumrah, Hardik Pandya and Ravindra Jadeja, and more:

Batting depth and maximising bowling potential

Given his past experience in the coaching setups with Lucknow Super Giants and Kolkata Knight Riders, with Gautam Gambhir, it's no surprise that he opted for combinations - in both T20Is and ODIs - that would offer a greater batting depth. It meant that at different times through the six-game tour, Axar Patel was slated to bat as low as No 8 or No 9.

For Gambhir to exercise that punt required maximising the bowling potential of the all-rounders and part-timers in the squad. Interestingly, one of the issues that India have faced in recent years was that their bowlers have been limited in their batting ability and their best batters have barely bowled. On this tour, Shubman Gill, Rohit Sharma, Rinku Singh and Suryakumar Yadav have rolled their arms over at various times, with varying degrees of success. More significantly, Riyan Parag and Shivam Dube were given greater responsibilities for the ball.

How did Parag and Dube fare with the ball?

If the three wickets that Riyan Parag picked in the first T20I seemed easy buys, the three that he scalped in the final ODI proved extremely critical. In his debut ODI, with an action that easily hides a legbreak from an off - Parag proved to be the most effective bowler for the team. Even in the two T20Is where he returned wicketless, he proved fairly economical on a flat surface where the Sri Lankan top-order had gained strong starts.

On the contrary, Dube provided barely any threat despite bagging his maiden ODI wicket. Unlike Parag though, there wasn't much assistance from the pitch for Dube. But the bigger concern is that he couldn't latch on to the opportunity of making a strong case for himself as a backup for Hardik Pandya, with the bat or the ball. One terrific catch aside, his fielding also left much wanting. Unlike the spin department with ample all-round options, the search for a pace all-rounder still hasn't given India enough choices beyond Hardik.

More opportunities on the cards for Parag?

He did enough with the ball to earn himself more chances with the national team, but he couldn't create the same impact with his primary skill - batting. Parag was pushed into the Indian team at the back of just one stellar IPL season, after having delivered underwhelming performances for the first five seasons. A good reason for that change in form was credited to his promotion from a finisher to a more familiar No 4 spot in Rajasthan Royals. But with Team India, he finds himself yet again in the finisher's role. Opportunities in the national team can be scarce and rare. It remains to be seen if Parag can find a way to excel in a position where he hasn't in the past.

The left-right obsession

There is more than just batting depth that Gambhir has carried from his IPL experience to the Indian team. The need to have a right-left combination running through the innings. It was especially obvious in the T20Is, and also formed the positional-and-skill blueprint for the team selection. While the team attempted the same in the ODIs as well, it was largely because spin played a big part and the oppositions were stocked with numerous options.

Will that obsession continue even when the full-strength squad is available?

It looks certain for the T20Is.

In ODIs, at this point, if Rohit Sharma, Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul and Hardik Pandya are expected to play in the top six, there is strong possibility that the No 7 - which could be Ravindra Jadeja or Axar Patel - would have a much greater role to play in the middle overs with the bat, and highly unlikely that they would bat too often in their designated position.

Barring Rishabh Pant and to an extent Yashasvi Jaiswal, at this point, there is no real contender to challenge the right-handers for a spot in the team. However, with India likely to play most of their limited overs cricket on flat tracks, unlike the one in Colombo more often, there would be enough reason to consider if they really need that right-left combination ahead of as a compromise to other skills.

What about Washington Sundar?

The offspinning all-rounder did no harm to his chances following the Player of the Series performance in Zimbabwe. A few critical runs with the bat, a few useful wickets with the ball. 50 runs and five wickets in three games don't make the best of readings, but on those contributions have come at important points. Moreover, his presence allows Gambhir to effectively tick mark two of his strong team mantras - batting depth and the effective implementation of the right-left combination. But given how India has approached ODIs previously, is there a place for the offspinner in the XI?

The spin struggles

All the tested ideas sound good on paper, but India's inability to counter spin in the middle overs has thrown open a new challenge for Gambhir & Co. Thrice in three games, India's line-up barring Rohit Sharma and a couple of one-off contributors has collapsed against spin. Jeffrey Vandersay's legbreaks, Wanindu Hasaranga's variations, Charith Asalanka's part-time offspin and Dunith Wellalage's left-arm orthodox have all contributed to their downfall. While these issues could be specific to the challenges in Sri Lankan conditions, with limited bearing to the pitches in most other international venues around the world, it may not worry them as much as it would've at another point in the year.