Veteran pacer Zaheer Khan slammed the Indian management for changing the batting order during the third ODI against Australia. The Men in Blue lost the three-match series 1-2 at home versus Australia and lost their top spot in the ICC ODI Team Rankings. It was a big blow for India in the ODI World Cup year which will be played in India later this year.
Rohit Sharma and Co failed to chase the 270-run target and lost the third and final ODI by 21 runs. India made some drastic changes in the batting order during the chase as Axar Patel was promoted at number 4 in the batting order as Suryakumar Yadav was demoted to the sixth spot as the hosts wobbled in the chase.
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Khan said India started the chase on a strong note but not giving any wickets to leading Australia pacer Mitchell Starc but feels that the decision to change the batting order backfired for them.
“India had a good start. Mitchell Starc not getting wickets—that box was ticked in this particular match. But the batting order changed. It’s still beyond my understanding. It’s easy to say from the outside when you’re watching, but still, I think sometimes you have to be proactive. It was like changing things unnecessarily,” Khan said on Cricbuzz.
The veteran pacer said that the management has to show some faith in their batting order as the India top 3 – Rohit Sharma, Shubman Gill and Virat Kohli looked solid at the start in the chase.
“You’ve got to have faith in your batting lineup, and you also had a good start. Rohit Sharma and Shubman Gill batted beautifully for the first 10 overs and then Virat Kohli continued with that, but the whole change in the batting order post that is something that needs to be looked at again, especially in crucial matches going forward,” he added.
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The legendary India pacer also suggested that the visitors analysed the conditions well as the bowlers’ plan worked well.
“This game was all about how the old ball was going to be played. It is very interesting how Australia played it. I thought they were very smart about it right at the outset, with Mitchell Starc bowling a lot of scrambled seam. It didn’t swing as much, so they realized that their best chance was to get the ball to reverse. So the way they used the new ball, and they knew that their two spinners were their trump card,” he said.
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