Team India Overly Depend On One Or Two Batters In Overseas Conditions - VVS Laxman Says Collective Performance Needed To Win Series In England

Former India batsman VVS Laxman has pointed out a key area that needs careful addressing by the management if they wish to win the upcoming Test series versus England. He opined that the visitors would need collective batting performances by the batsmen, and not just one or two individuals putting in the bulk of the effort if they are to record history in the next two months.

On the previous tour, in which India lost 4-1, skipper Virat Kohli was piled up a huge amount of runs – 593 at 59.30 – while the next best was KL Rahul with 299 runs. On the other hand, England didn’t have a single-player carrying the side, instead, most of the batsmen were amongst healthy runs – with three batters scoring over 300 and three more scoring 200 and more runs in the series.

“One thing that Ravi Shastri and Virat Kohli need to address is – the match-winning performances from their batsmen. They overly depend on one or two batters in overseas conditions, especially in conditions like England.

“If you want to beat England in a five-Test series, then you want to have a collective performance from your batting unit. You can’t expect one or two batsmen to perform, and then you expect to win the series. And that is something that Ravi Shastri and Virat Kohli would like to address,” VVS Laxman said in an interaction with Star Sports.

Important for management to show confidence in each and every player: VVS Laxman

Recently, players Cheteshwar Pujara and Ajinkya Rahane have come under the firing line for either their approach or inconsistency. Pujara has been criticized for his conservative batting style, while Rahane, the Test vice-captain, for his lack of big scores on regular basis. Not to forget – Pujara was dropped from the first Test of the previous tour to England, and Rahane from the first two Tests in South Africa three years ago.

VVS Laxman, however, asserted that the management should give their backing and put confidence in the experienced players, instead, in each and every player and support them with whatever their style of playing is.

“Everyone will have a different formula, and everyone will have a different approach to score runs. There is an approach that Virat Kohli has – which he has consistently maintained throughout his career – then there is an approach Pujara has shown, and Rahane has shown, or Rohit Sharma is showing as an opener.

“So, I think it is important for the team management to back each and every player to show confidence in their approach,” VVS Laxman concluded.

Also Read: Virat Kohli Will Come Out Flying Against England – Graeme Swann Backs Indian Captain To ‘Score Runs Anywhere At Any Time’