Minutes after Scotland had been bowled out for 85, head coach Ravi Shastri and batting coach Vikram Rathour were seen in a huddle with mentor Mahendra Singh Dhoni peering into a piece of paper before passing on the instructions. With India’s fortunes now solely depending on the net run rate if Afghanistan upset New Zealand, the calculations were always going to be crucial.

The Indian openers played according to plan, knocking off the target just three balls beyond the Powerplay overs to edge ahead of New Zealand and Afghanistan in the net run rate. India’s eight-wicket victory has put them in third spot in Group 2, with four points and a net run rate of 1.619.

For India to qualify, they will have to hope that Afghanistan, with their spin force led by Rashid Khan, beat New Zealand on Sunday.

Rohit Sharma and KL Rahul went about with their usual attacking display that left Scotland bowling in tatters, the latter completing his 50 off 18 balls. The openers’ dismissals didn’t mean much and Suryakumar Yadav wrapped it up with a straight six.

There was never any doubt over the talent in the current team. Be it bubble fatigue, wrong selections or the failure to execute plans in showpiece tournaments, Virat Kohli’s men have disappointed fans, enterprising batting and bowling notwithstanding. The ongoing T20 World Cup has been no exception. Perhaps they have struck form a bit too late.

Rahul Dravid knows what it feels to lose in the opening round of a World Cup. The head coach-designate was the captain when they crashed out of the 50-over version in 2007. More than a decade later, he will know the fine-tuning which needs to be done with this extremely talented bunch.

Kohli didn’t take a wrong step on his 33rd birthday. Surprise of surprises, he even won the toss. For the Indian captain, who had lost 13 of his previous 14 tosses for India, it was a perfect present.

More than the players’ skills, it is the toss that has proved to be crucial for the evening encounters in Dubai. With the dew making it tough for the teams bowling second, the outcome has mostly

been predetermined. Given the circumstances, it was no revelation when Kohli opted to field.

Scotland’s distress against spin was known and the Indians decided to go in with a three-pronged attack, Varun Chakravarthy replacing Shardul Thakur to join Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja.

The Indians were ruthless from the outset: Jasprit Bumrah with his yorkers, Chakravarthy with his mystery stuff against a side which had never witnessed him in a match, Mohammed Shami with his accuracy and pace, Ashwin with his variations and Jadeja with his ability to choke up the runs.

The disparity between the teams was evident right through. If the spinners were wily at their craft, Bumrah was lethal at the back end. The pacer’s two for 10 made him India’s leading wicket-taker in T20Is with 64 wickets.

George Munsey tried a bit of innovation with a flicked six off Bumrah but Shami made sure his flamboyance didn’t last long.

There was no stopping India on the day. But the unpredictability of this format will haunt them if they end their campaign on Monday.