"Leave your ego..."- Sunil Gavaskar blasts at India's approach ahead of 2nd South Africa Test
The former Indian captain and opening batter of the side, Sunil Gavaskar, blasted at the timid approach of the Indian cricket team during the opening Test of the two-match series against South Africa at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata.
The former Indian captain and the opening batter, Sunil Gavaskar, has blasted at the Indian team’s approach during the opening Test of the two-match series against South Africa at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata, where they experienced a defeat by 30 runs, having been bundled out for just 93 runs in the fourth innings in a chase of 124 runs.
In his column, Gavaskar has written that the defeat has reflected the management’s reluctance to trust the domestic heavy run scorers and the tendency of international players to spend little time on the domestic pitches. It was India’s fourth home Test loss in the last six affairs.
“The defeat to South Africa will hopefully open the eyes of those who matter to look at the heavy scorers in domestic cricket, who are used to playing on pitches where the ball spins and keeps low. The international players are so busy playing overseas that they do not have practice playing on domestic pitches, and so are found wanting.” Gavaskar expressed in his column.
Sunil Gavaskar turns red-faced on India’s timid approach in home South Africa Test in Kolkata
Gavaskar also took a dig at Gautam Gambhir and Ajit Agarkar’s continued backing of Nitish Kumar Reddy as a Test all-rounder. Without taking his name, he addressed that a true all-rounder would have the skill to feature both as a batter and bowler.
“Test batting demands patience and, more importantly, the willingness to leave your ego in the changing room. It does not matter if you get beaten and rapped on the leg guards. You do not have to try to knock the ball out of the ground to show who is the boss. The only boss is the one who stays humble and accepts that at this level, the bowler will beat you, and so waits a bit till the scoreable ball comes along.” The former Indian batter wrote.
“India also needs to understand the difference between a Test all-rounder and a limited-overs all-rounder. A genuine Test all-rounder is someone who could make the eleven solely as a batter or as a bowler. A player who only offers a few overs or a few runs is not what Test cricket demands.” Gavaskar penned down.
Tags:
