New Delhi [India], March 12 (ANI): With two successive white-ball titles following T20 World Cup 2024 and ICC Champions Trophy 2025 wins, the Men in Blue, left heartbroken by a loss to Australia at 2023 World Cup finals, are at the top of the world again. A highly-motivated and confident India, halfway through their journey towards 2027 ICC Cricket World Cup, has managed to solve its biggest issue in white-ball cricket that kept its trophy cabinet empty for so long: Instability and inconsistency in the middle-order.

Since 2010s, India's white-ball success has been dependent on the heroics of its biggest superstars, Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli. Openers Shikhar Dhawan, the 'Mr ICC' for India and later, the 'Prince' Shubman Gill served as highly-attacking openers that would complement Rohit and Virat well. If Rohit did not get them, Gill did. If Gill did not get them, Rohit did. If Rohit-Gill failed, it was Virat's safety net that guarded India from danger. However, in recent years, India found itself struggling to find new middle-order replacements for its former stars, skipper MS Dhoni, Suresh Raina and Yuvraj Singh, three men who kept India steps ahead of their opponents with a rare mix of calm and aggression.

So whenever this famed trio lost form, there was often no hiding for Team India as despite success of their top-order, they would stand exposed against world-class batting line-ups. This was the case plenty of times before the 2023 World Cup in India, when these veterans battled occasional dips in form. India tried several alternates, like Kedar Jhadav, Ambati Rayadu, Vijay Shankar, Manish Pandey, young Rishabh Pant and Hardik Pandya, but their ability did not match the intensity and demands of an occasion as big as an ICC event.

A tracking of India's middle-order performances from their World Cup title defence in 2015 till now shows that in 2020s, a stability in Indian middle order has come, with Shreyas Iyer and KL Rahul being key accumulators and likes of Axar Patel, Hardik Pandya and Suryakumar Yadav being given a role to blast right from ball one. This stability and role clarity has given the Indian middle-order the consistency it wanted since years and it could win them many championship titles in years to come.

From 2015 World Cup to 2019 World Cup, India's middle-order struggled due to inexperience, age catching up with its superstars and consequent inconsistency.

*2015 ICC Cricket World Cup

During the 2015 World Cup, the top-order of Shikhar (412 runs in eight matches with two centuries and a fifty), Rohit (330 runs in eight innings with a century and two fifties) and Virat (305 runs in eight innings with a century) made 1,068 runs in 24 innings at an average of 48.54 and a strike rate of 90.27, with four centuries and three half-centuries.

Compared to them, the middle order consisting of Suresh Raina (284 runs in six innings with a century and two fifties), MS Dhoni (237 runs in six innings with two fifties), Ajinkya Rahane (208 runs in seven innings with one fifty) and Ravindra Jadeja (57 runs in five innings) made a total of 786 runs at an average of 41.36, strike rate of 98.12. They together scored a century and five fifties in 24 innings.

But other than Raina's half-centuries against Pakistan and Bangladesh (in quarterfinals), Dhoni's fighting half-century in semifinal against Australia, the middle-order failed to deliver notable contributions in big matches. A crumbling against Australia in the semifinals left this middle-order short of achieving its true potential.

*2017 ICC Champions Trophy

In the 2017 ICC Champions Trophy, India bet on its two old, match-winning horses, a returning Yuvraj and Dhoni, both in their mid to late 30s. Two fresher talents, Hardik and Kedar also earned call-ups to the squads.

Once again, India was carried to the finals of the Champions Trophy largely on back of an unstoppable Rohit-Shikhar-Virat trio, which made 900 runs in 15 innings, at an average of 81.81, a strike rate of 95.44, two centuries and seven half-centuries. Shikhar (338 runs in five matches with a century and two fifties), Rohit (304 runs in five matches with a century and two fifties) were the two top-run-getters while Virat was not too far with 258 runs in five matches with three fifties).

However, the middle-order once again crumbled, especially during the high-profile clash against Pakistan in the final during a 339-run chase, except for a fighting 76 by Hardik. The middle-order made a combined 311 runs in 11 innings at an average of 38.87, strike rate of 112.68 and just three half-centuries. Key performers were: Hardik (105 runs in three matches with a fifty), Yuvraj (105 runs in four innings with a fifty) and Dhoni (67 runs in two innings with a fifty). Jadhav could scored 34 runs in two innings, with the best of 25*.

*2019 ICC Cricket World Cup

During the 2019 World Cup in UK, a stable middle-order was non-existent as options like KL Rahul, Dhoni, Hardik, Kedar, Rishabh and Vijay were tried out. The top-order of Shikhar Dhawan (125 runs in two matches, one century, withdrew due to injury), Rohit Sharma (648 runs in nine matches with five centuries, one fifty), Virat (443 runs in nine matches with five fifties) and Rahul (324 runs in seven innings with a century and two fifties) made a massive 1,540 runs in 27 innings, averaging 61.60, with a strike rate of 91.72, with seven centuries and eight fifties.

As compared to this, the middle order scored just 790 runs in 31 innings, with the batting average dwindling to 35.90 and the strike rate being slightly better at 91.75. Only three half-centuries came from middle-order, two by Dhoni (273 runs in eight innings with two fifties) and one by Kedar (80 runs in five innings, with a fifty). Hardik was at his hard-hitting best though, delivering explosive 226 runs in nine innings at an average of 32.28, with a strike rate of over 112 and best score of 48. KL scored just 37 runs in two innings in the middle-order, while Vijay scored just 58 runs in his run at numbers four and six. Pant, who made 116 runs in four matches at an average of 29.00 and best score of 48, was just finding his feet in white-ball cricket at number four spot, aged just 21.

*2023 ICC Cricket World Cup

The dark ages of Indian middle-order came to an end under the captaincy of Rohit, with Iyer and Rahul taking centre-stage as accumulators. In the 2023 WC, India's top order scored heavily, blasting right from ball one. Rohit (597 runs in 11 innings with a century and three half-centuries), Virat (765 runs in 11 matches with three centuries and six fifties), Gill (354 runs in nine matches with four fifties) and Ishan Kishan (47 runs in two innings) delivered fireworks with 1,763 runs in 33 innings, at an average of 60.79, and strike rate of over 103, with four centuries and 13 fifties to their name.

Finally, the middle-order also executed its role perfectly, delivering 1,219 runs in 34 innings at an average of 53.00, strike rate of over 101, with three centuries and five fifties to their name. Iyer and Rahul were the backbone of this middle-order, with (468 runs in 11 innings at an average of 66.25, a strike rate of over 113, two centuries and three fifties) and 452 runs in 10 innings at an average of 75.33, a strike rate of over 90, a century and two fifties) to their name. Ravindra Jadeja (120 runs in five innings at an average of 40.00), Suryakumar (106 runs in seven innings at average of 17.66) chipped in some useful cameos. If it was not for the fumbling in the final, these numbers would have looked even more better.

*2025 ICC Champions Trophy

Now, coming to the Champions Trophy, India delivered its most complete performance ever, with all the main men joining the party in knockout stages as well. The middle-order, boosted by Axar's spin counter-attack, scored 591 runs in 18 innings at an average of 42.21, with strike rate of 85.77 and two half-centuries. Shreyas (243 runs in five innings with two fifties), KL Rahul (140 runs in four innings at an average of 140.00), Axar (109 runs in five innings at an average of 27.25) and Hardik (99 runs in four matches at an average of 24.75) played as per demands and conditions to the perfection.

As compared to the middle-order, the top order of Rohit Sharma (180 runs in five matches with a half-century, strike rate of 100.00), Gill (188 runs in five innings with a century and strike rate of 75.50) and Virat (218 runs in five innings, with a century and fifty, strike rate of 82.88) made a combined 586 runs at an average of 45.07 and a strike rate of 84.68, with two centuries and two fifties to their name.

Now, in 2023 ODI WC and 2025 CT, the Indian middle-order has let go off its dependency on top-order and has reliability and identity of its own. The numbers do not lie that the consistency is more than ever and most of the experiments have passed the test. Will this same middle-order guide India to the 2027 ODI World Cup and become the all-time greatest ever? (ANI)