India’s seven wicket loss to New Zealand hasn’t gone down well with many former cricketers and pundits alike. The manner of defeat has raised questions as not only Shikhar Dhawan-led side lost the match heavily, they couldn’t defend 300 plus total on board. Some of the team selection was baffling as they refrained from playing an extra bowler and it showed as New Zealand batted India out of the match despite being 88/3.
Also Read: ‘It’s Not the Shreyas Iyer I Want to See’-Kiwi Legend Wants India Batter to Fight Against Short Ball
Speaking on the number of shortcomings that were on display, former selector Saba Karim said he didn’t understand why the management picked up an extra batter, adding that Deepak Hooda could have been the difference.
“India didn’t have many options, given that there was no sixth bowler. That made things more difficult. The first thing the team management has to do is identify a sixth bowling option. We have consistently gone with five bowlers in white-ball cricket. I simply cannot understand this strategy,” he told India News.
FIFA World Cup 2022 Points Table | FIFA World Cup 2022 Schedule | FIFA World Cup 2022 Results | FIFA World Cup 2022 Golden Boot
“Instead of playing an extra batter, why didn’t India play Deepak Hooda? We have to make bold decisions in terms of team selection. The selectors have packed the side with a lot of batters. But where are the all-rounders? If Hardik Pandya isn’t playing, where is another all-rounder to replace him?”
Furthermore, Indian spinners also had an off day as the duo of Washington Sundar and Yuzvendra Chahal failed to pick up a single wicket. Tom Latham made full use of the docile bowling, although he did mention that Sundar was getting some turn. Nonetheless, he went wicketless and Karim mentioned how Latham brought out the sweep shot against him.
“We have seen this for many years: a player who can play the sweep and the reverse sweep well has always troubled the Indian bowlers. Why don’t we prepare well for such batters? There has to be a change in pace, or maybe we can set the field accordingly to win that battle. We have to find a way. Otherwise, we will continue to struggle against these batters.”
Also Read: ‘That’s Where He Took the Game Away from Us’-Shikhar Dhawan Mentions Shardul Thakur Over
Coming off a first-ball duck, Shreyas Iyer found form with a neat half-century before Washington Sundar blazed away to a 16-ball 37 to guide India to a competitive total.
Besides Iyer’s 76-ball 80, Shikhar Dhawan (72 off 77 balls) and Shubman Gill (50 off 65), too, struck fluent fifties after the tourists were sent in to bat.
Meanwhile Tom Latham scored a century and Kane Williamson finished on 94 not out as New Zealand went one up in the ODI series with a seven wicket win, having lost the Twenty20 series to India.
Get the latest Cricket News, Schedule and Cricket Live Scores here
Comments
0 comment