"Let Sarfaraz Khan and Dhruv Jurel play in Australia and England.."- Sanjay Manjrekar threatens young Indian batsmen

Former Indian cricketer Sanjay Manjrekar has expressed concerns about all the batters who debuted in the recent Test series against England, and whether they will be able to perform in SENA countries or not. Manjrekar made this admission after he closely watched all the debut-making players from the commentary box. He also expressed curiosity to know who will be taking the baton from Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli.

Sanjay Manjrekar, while speaking to ESPNcricinfo recently, also praised the team-building skills of Rahul Dravid and Rohit Sharma. For handing debuts to Akash Deep, Dhruv Jurel, Sarfaraz Khan, Rajat Patidar, and Devdutt Padikkal, Manjrekar cryptically thanked Rohit and Dravid.

Sanjay Manjrekar says positive things happened for India in the Test series

While speaking about the takeaways he had from India’s perspective in the 5-match Test series, Manjrekar stated that India’s bowling depth is going to be that one long-term investment that will reap its rewards. The 58-year-old also praised the likes of Kuldeep Yadav and Akash Deep among other bowlers for their performance in the series.

Kuldeep Yadav starred in the series with 19 wickets including several four-fers and a five-fer against a bleak English batting order which sunk under the Bazball influence. Akash Deep on the other hand made a memorable debut in the 4th Test match at Ranchi where he claimed figures of 3/83 in 19 overs as India won that match by 5 wickets.

Sanjay Manjrekar had special appreciation for Kuldeep who was the only wrist spinner in the series after Rehan Ahemd left for home.

“The big takeaway for me looking at Indian cricket in the long-term point of view is India’s bowling. The arrival of Kuldeep Yadav, and Akash Deep in that last Test match.”

“Now, when you look at the England batting failure and relentless pressure, when you have five bowlers of the likes of Bumrah, Akash Deep in the last Test, Siraj here, and then three spinners, where Kuldeep Yadav has made such rapid strides, there’s just no getaway for a team that has been struggling with consistent form.” – Manjrekar told ESPNcricinfo.

What we saw from this series was some serious competitive edge from the Indians regardless of situation and their response during do-or-die situations was even better. The Rohit Sharma-led team showed that they are ready for Test cricket and they know exactly how to produce a positive turnaround from tricky moments.

Manjrekar eager to see the developments of Sarfaraz Khan and Dhruv Jurel among other batters

Sanjay Manjrekar went on to further add that even if India’s bowling has been secured for the coming years, it is the batting order that also needs to click consistently, especially in foreign conditions. Manjrekar praised Sarfaraz Khan and Dhruv Jurel for their exceptional foundation of red-ball cricket but he asked not to speculate anything before they go play in SENA conditions.