NAGPUR: Akshay Wadkar-led Vidarbha showed what they are capable of in the white ball business in the recently concluded Syed Mushtaq Ali (T20) Trophy (SMAT).
They fired on all cylinders and stunned some big teams like Delhi and Madhya Pradesh before faltering in the T20 semis. Their T20 performance reflects how well they have developed their death bowling and got the lower-middle order to do the job consistently.
Now, after a major shake-up in the team, the Wadkar-led side will look to give another glimpse of their drastically improved white ball trade when they take on Delhi in the Vijay Hazare one-day campaign opener in Kolkata on Saturday. Wadkar has replaced senior-most Vidarbha cricketer Faiz Fazal as skipper in the one-dayers. He will look to replicate the SMAT performance using the batting prowess and arsenal of all rounders.
Delhi, who lost the T20 quarterfinals to Vidarbha, will look for revenge. They have some big names from the white ball circuit who can attack every bowler. They ride on their power-hitting and the Vidarbha think-tank is well aware of what they can do.
Wadkar would look to challenge them through left-arm spinners Aditya Sarwate and Akshay Karnewar, who also bowls with right-arm to left-handers.
Vidarbha have a settled opening pair in Faiz and Atharva Taide, robust middle-order comprising Ganesh Satish, Akshay Wadkar and Apoorv Wankhade, and one of the country's best finishers in Jitesh Sharma. With the return of Faiz and Satish, Vidarbha side looks to have the best line-up and a vast experience to challenge any attack.
Vidarbha coach Sanjeev Sharma has exciting allrounders in Nachiket Bhute and Harsh Dubey, who can surprise any rivals with their excellent command over the ball. While Bhute is a pacer, Dubey bowls left-arm spin and they both can tonk the ball at will.
Since Bhute was drafted in from the under-25 team, he is expected to make a List-A debut. If Bhute gets a go, only two pacers from among Yash Thakur, Lalit Yadav and Darshan Nalkande will play alongside Umesh Yadav.
