Sehwag rates Nehra over Zaheer Khan in limited-overs cricket

'Batting is their biggest strength' is one of those overused cliche's of Indian cricket. But with the ICC World Twenty20 2016 just a few days away, this is probably one of those rare occasions where the Indian think tank does not have any real concerns about their bowling department. If you go a little further, you can narrow this position of comfort down to the fast bowling department.

Up until three months ago, this was not the case. India were still unsure about their seam attack for the mega event. Bhuvneshwar Kumar seemed to have lost his swing, Umesh Yadav continued to be erratic, Ishant Sharma had found it hard to come back into the T20I side and Mohammed Shami struggled to recover from his injuries.

This prompted the selectors to bring back veteran Ashish Nehra, who had performed well for Chennai Super Kings in the 2015 Indian Premier League (IPL). The move raised a few eyebrows considering his age but the selectors believed in his abilities, the experience he brought and were keen to see how he would fare on the international circuit after more than four years out.

Alongside Nehra, Jasprit Bumrah was unleashed. It turned out to be the perfect combination for Team India as they attained instant success, right from the Australian T20 series. The ploy to bring back the 36-year-old Nehra ahead of the biennial event was perfect, believes Virender Sehwag, Nehra's former teammate in the Delhi and the Indian teams.

"I am very happy for Nehra. He was the best bowler in the IPL. They picked him and gave him chances in T20Is because he deserves that. And Bumrah was doing well in IPL as well as in domestic matches also," Sehwag tellsCricbuzz."Shami is the only concern. He had to undergo a knee surgery. Because he's a fast bowler, I don't know how much recovery time he'd would require. What I heard is that he played a couple of T20 games in which he bowled well. The only concern is Shami...If he is fit, then this team is the best team to win the T20 World Cup."

The flamboyant batsman is also quick to point out the advantage of having a bowler of Nehra's experience bowling in the Powerplay. "The way he has come back, he is the asset for the Indian team. He will bowl three overs with the new ball and one over in death - he's reliable, economical and he can bowl anywhere," he points out.

Dhoni has been using the 36-year-old's services along the same lines. Three at the start and one at the end. The formula worked in the IPL and continues to work for the national side. The left-arm pacer has picked up five wickets at an economy of 8.00 in the recently concluded T20I series against Sri Lanka. Against Australia, in his comeback tour, he picked up just two wickets but ensured his economy didn't go past the eight run mark, despite it being a remarkably high-scoring series. Now, he's begun the Asia Cup with a bang by picking three wickets against hosts Bangladesh in the first game. He then followed it up by dismissing Mohammad Hafeez against Pakistan which triggered a collapse with the men in green getting dismissed for a paltry 83.

He may no longer bowl in the late 140s like he did 13 years ago but still manages to generate decent pace and that coupled with swing is always trouble for the opposition. His ability to bowl in different situations makes Sehwag rate him even above the wily Zaheer Khan, in limited-overs cricket.

"I rate him higher than Zaheer Khan in ODIs and T20s. Because of the kind of pace he generates, the kind of line and length he can bowl, the yorkers he can bowl," Sehwag reasons. "I think Nehra as an ODI and T20 bowler has been very good. He did well in the 2011 World Cup and before that. In 2011 World Cup he got injured and he didn't play after and I don't know why and what the reason was.

"I still remember the game when we scored 414 against Sri Lanka at Rajkot. Nehra and Zaheer bowled 30 yorkers out of 36 balls in last six overs and we won by 4 runs. They were the two experienced bowlers and they bowled beautifully. But why I rate Nehra higher than Zaheer in ODIs is because Nehra picked a lot of wickets, bowled in Powerplays and deaths and all the times in difficult situations."

To rate another bowler ahead of someone like Zaheer, who is widely regarded as India's best fast bowler post 2000, does say something. Even though the stats don't exactly reveal the same in 50-overs cricket, Nehra does edge it in T20 cricket, which highlights his adaptability and fitness levels as rightly pointed out by the Delhi dasher.

Sehwag reiterates that Nehra is India's best bet in the seam bowling department for the World Cup and believes the younger crop will deliver in the future with more experience. "He has worked hard on his fitness and has been more reliable than the other fast bowlers," he says "Yes, they didn't play much cricket - Varun Aaron, Umesh Yadav and Ishant Sharma - but the moment they play 150-200 or 250 ODIs and T20s, maybe they will get experience and they will deliver better. At the moment, Nehra is the best choice for T20 World Cup."

No wonder Viru gets so excited to watch his former teammate in action as he keeps a close tab on his performances. We have seen him call the 36-year-old fondly as 'Nehra ji' in his tweets these days whenever the his old pal gets a wicket. There is enough indication that Nehra will keep Sehwag busy on Twitter in the next couple of months.