The good and the less good
India's Test side overcame odds and shone, but their one-day performances were not quite up to their own high standards

Interesting times ahead for India's newish captain and his predecessor • AFP
Almost every mistake made by Kohli was covered up by Ashwin, giving the captain a cushioned landing in a high-pressure job
After 78 winless days over the Tests and the tri-series in Australia, India took 70 of the 70 wickets on offer in their first seven World Cup games. The batsmen all put their hands up, the bowlers were impregnable as a team, and the fielding was top notch. On every big day they let the opposition work itself into a frenzy, and calmly sailed through themselves. The bowling team of Shami, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Mohit Sharma, Ashwin and Jadeja was a joy to watch. A pity that their bad day happened to arrive in the semi-final.
In the ODI series against Bangladesh, India came unstuck against the fast cutters of left-arm pace bowler Mustafizur Rahman. Bangladesh have come far as an ODI side, especially at home, but it is still no disrespect to them that India are expected to win two times out of three. This time, though, India just couldn't stall the Bangladesh momentum, and Dhoni's frustration boiled over as he lashed out at the quick bowlers, who hadn't exactly covered themselves in glory.
In a year where India hardly tinkered with their players - the Test batsmen were solid and the bowlers were rotated - they spent their first full year under an exclusively Indian coaching staff for the first time since they hired John Wright at the turn of the century. B Arun (bowling), Sanjay Bangar (batting) and R Sridhar (fielding) gathered positive reviews, and bombastic team director Ravi Shastri didn't let them run low on positivity.
This is going to be a fascinating year from the point of view of both Dhoni and Kohli. Dhoni is under pressure, he has spent time away from the international grind, has come back a leaner man, and has been given the confidence to lead India into the home World T20. If he can't turn it around, time might run out for him. For Kohli the captain, the soft launch will continue as India won't leave their shores to play Test cricket. One of New Zealand, England and Australia, though, could mount a prickly challenge, which is when his captaincy will really be tested.
Sidharth Monga is an assistant editor at ESPNcricinfo