IND vs SA: "I Believe That The Main Problem When India Fielded Was One Bowler Giving Away 43 runs”- Sunil Gavaskar

After struggling against a potent South Africa pace assault on Sunday, India lost their first game of the competition.

Meanwhile, former Indian skipper Sunil Gavaskar stated, “One bowler conceding 43 runs was the primary concern,” without mentioning Ravichandran Ashwin by name.

Gavaskar referred to the fielding errors, which included Virat Kohli dropping Aiden Markram at 35 and Rohit Sharma failing to run out Markram shortly after, as a normal part of the game of cricket and focused on Ashwin’s performance in the low-scoring thriller.

We Cannot Blame Any One Player For The Loss: Sunil Gavaskar

“Things like dropping a catch and missing a run-out chance happen in cricket. We can’t blame any one player for the loss. When luck is not on your side, big players too can drop catches or miss run-out chances. I believe that the main problem when India fielded was one bowler giving away 43 runs,” Gavaskar told Aaj Tak.

Despite having given up 43 runs, it was Ashwin’s bowling on which Markram was dropped. Miller tonked him for two sixes as Rohit Sharma was forced to go ahead with Ashwin bowling the crucial 18th over.

Sunil Gavaskar claimed that Yuzvendra Chahal should have played for India against the Netherlands to help him get in shape for the remainder of the tournament.

“I believe Yuzvendra Chahal should have played against Netherlands and it would have given him confidence ahead of next matches.”

Sunil Gavaskar Questions Paddy Upton’s Work On KL Rahul

KL Rahul, the Indian opener, has scored just 22 runs in three T20 world cup games. Sunil Gavaskar, a former captain of India, thinks the problem is now more of a mental one rather than one of batting technique. He charged Paddy Upton of India of “not doing anything with Rahul.”

“I believe mental conditioning coach Paddy Upton has not done anything with Rahul. While the batting coach can tell him his mistakes, there is a need for the mental conditioning coach to talk with Rahul. He should tell Rahul that he has got the talent and he can score big runs,” said Gavaskar.

He acknowledged Rahul’s shortcomings but added that India should be more patient with him because there is no one (no regular opener) to replace him.

“Do you have another opener? I don’t think the Indian team has an opener, who can replace Rahul in the side. We have to show some patience with Rahul.

Because we know he is a top class batsman when he is in good rhythm. He got out opening the face of the bat with one slip in place and it looked like he was giving catch practice,” Gavaskar said.

Sunil Gavaskar Suggests Playing Rishabh Pant Against Bangladesh

However, he continued by suggesting that Rishabh Pant start the following match against Bangladesh.

“The match against Bangladesh is a big match since the match against Zimbabwe can be affected by weather in Melbourne.

So the Indian team has to field their strongest XI against Bangladesh. They can open with Rishabh Pant against Bangladesh since the side boundaries at Adelaide are shorter and he can exploit that,” said Gavaskar.

Indian Batters Should Have Build More Partnerships: Sunil Gavaskar

After India’s five-wicket loss to South Africa in their third game of the T20 World Cup on Sunday in Perth, Gavaskar urged the Indian batters to pursue more partnerships. He described the Indian batting order as largely dependent on the top four batsmen.

“Indian batting is absolutely top class. But we have seen that when one of two wickets fall, then 1-2 wickets fall in succession. At such a phase, partnerships are needed. That did not happen in this match. That’s why we could score 133 runs.

If the partnerships were there, we would have scored in excess of 150 runs and the result would have been different. I believe our batsman could not do anything due to the pitch. The pitch had lots of bounce and our batsman got out due to that. They went for hook and pull shots, which resulted in their dismissal,” said Gavaskar.

Also Read: IND vs SA: ‘Deepak Hooda Had To Play Smart Cricket’- Sunil Gavaskar Unhappy With Indian Batter’s Shot Selection vs South Africa