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Legendary batter Sunil Gavaskar has slammed the West Indies fast bowler Shamar Joseph for crossing the line against Arshdeep Singh in the final over of the fourth T20I on Wednesday, October 14, at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium in Hyderabad.
The former Indian captain felt Joseph should have targeted the stumps instead of repeatedly bowling towards the Indian pacer’s body when India were already struggling to chase the huge target. Amid this, Abhishek Sharma breaks Suryakumar Yadav’s record with 69 sixes in 2026.
Shamar Joseph under fire after Arshdeep Singh suffers painful blow
The incident took place when India needed 35 runs from the final over with only one wicket remaining. Arshdeep Singh managed to hit the first ball for a four after getting a top edge, but the next delivery struck him on the arm during India’s chase.
Joseph then bowled another ball towards his body as Arshdeep moved away, leaving the Indian batter in visible pain. The Indian pacer was unable to continue batting comfortably after being hit and called for the physio at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium.
He tried to carry on but was in pain again two balls later and eventually retired hurt. With India’s No. 11 batter unable to continue, the innings ended at 19.3 overs, and the West Indies won the game by 24 runs to level the five-match T20I series 2-2 on Wednesday.
Sunil Gavaskar slams Shamar Joseph’s tactics against Arshdeep Singh
Sunil Gavaskar felt Arshdeep Singh should not have continued if the pain was serious, as doing so could have made the injury worse. However, the former India captain slammed Shamar Joseph’s decision to keep bowling towards the batter instead of aiming at the stumps.
Sunil Gavaskar said, as quoted by the Hindustan Times, "If he is not ok, he should retire." He seems to be in pain. You do not want to aggravate that injury.”
The legendary batter Sunil Gavaskar believed Joseph knew Arshdeep was moving towards the leg side and should have used that movement to target the stumps.
Sunil Gavaskar added, “Would it not be simpler to just aim at the stumps? He knows that he is moving away to the left. Just aim at the stumps. Don’t aim at him. He is aiming at him.”
Shreyas Iyer Signals Arshdeep Singh’s Return before Shreevats Goswami's criticism
Earlier, former Indian wicketkeeper-batter Shreevats Goswami also criticized the West Indies pacer, saying his actions in the final three balls against Arshdeep did not reflect the spirit of the game.
Goswami felt Arshdeep had very little chance of helping India win from that position, so Joseph could have simply bowled at the stumps instead of following the batter towards his body.
Interestingly, India captain Shreyas Iyer signalled from the dugout for Arshdeep to return, as India would need the fast bowler for the important series decider. After the match, Sanju Samson also revealed that the pacer was applying ice to his shoulder.
Both teams will now fight for the trophy in the fifth and final T20I on Saturday, October 17 at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru. After the home series, India will travel to New Zealand for the five ODIs and five T20Is and three Tests later this month.
