In the short break that Anshul Kamboj had before flying to New Zealand, first for the A series and then for the ODI tour, the seamer did a routine in Karnal that he wanted to be part of his muscle memory. Bowling with the white ball in an open ground, the 25-year-old would run in and keep hitting the back-of-a-length area around the off-stump channel.

It is nothing special. It is the basics. But it is what Kamboj wants to become muscle memory. With a year to go for the ODI World Cup, India are still figuring out which puzzle piece fits where and which of the pacers will offer them more flexibility. While Jasprit Bumrah ’s place appears locked, the same can’t be said for the others. There is Arshdeep Singh , Harshit Rana, Prasidh Krishna, Gurnoor Brar and, of course, Mohammed Siraj , a pacer they have sparingly used in the format of late.

While India have had the luxury of batting and bowling depth in T20Is, in ODIs the story is different.…