West Indies not a one-gear team: Arshdeep Singh

Chennai: After a three-wicket burst that carried him past Jasprit Bumrah as India’s leading wicket-taker in T20 World Cup history, Arshdeep Singh was still buzzing, but not just about his own 35 scalps. Speaking in the Chepauk media zone late Thursday night, the left-arm quick warned that the West Indies, India’s next opponents in Sunday’s virtual quarter-final at Eden Gardens, are far more versatile than the highlight reels of six-hitting suggest.

Arshdeep, whose swing at both ends stifled Zimbabwe during India’s final group game, admitted he had kept one eye on the earlier South Africa-West Indies clash. “We weren’t glued to the match but kept checking the scores here and there,” he said, breaking into a grin. “My family was in the hotel room and when the West Indies batters were hitting, my dad was cursing them. I said, ‘Don’t get angry, just enjoy the match, and hope that South Africa win’.” The eventual South African victory eased India’s path, earning a playful “thank you” from the 27-year-old, who now expects a sterner test from the Caribbean side. “They played very well, thank you to them for giving us the chance to decide our result in the next match,” he added. “It was fun to watch, and we’ll try to beat them in the final.”

That final reference is already looming large. West Indies, reduced to 83-7 against South Africa, still muscled their way to roughly 180, underscoring the depth of their batting. “It’s not like they have only one gear,” Arshdeep stressed. “If you look at their game against SA, they played really nicely in the middle as well. They took the game deep… So I guess they can also adapt according to the situation.”

India’s game plan, he revealed, has been forged on high-scoring tracks. “As long as our batters are having fun batting on these surfaces, we’re more than happy to do the dirty job. We don’t mind being hit for runs. Our game plan over the last year or two has been to score big and then try to defend it.” Personal discipline will also be critical. Asked about his approach, Arshdeep laughed: “Trying to control the chull (urge) of bowling bad balls.”

With only a day to recover before the Eden Gardens shootout, India’s bowlers will spend Friday assessing both body and conditions. “The focus right now is on recovery, and we’ll assess things on game day,” he said. If Thursday’s evidence is anything to go by, Arshdeep will arrive swinging—both the ball and the verbal jabs—fully aware that the West Indies can shift gears when least expected.