IND vs SA: Sunil Gavaskar Points To 'Lack Of Balance' In the Current Indian Set Up

Former Indian skipper Sunil Gavaskar has pointed out a shortcoming in the current Indian cricket setup that is harming Indian cricket. A lot has happened since the removal of Virat Kohli after he voluntarily left the T20I captaincy. India lost the Test series only to see Kohli step down as India’s Test captain as well. Good leadership has been one of the problems since Kohli’s removal.

SA vs IND Dream11 Prediction

To add to that, Sunil Gavaskar has also pointed out to the lack of balance in the Indian cricket team at the moment. A good all-rounder has been missing from the squad everseinceHardi Pandya’s injury. Talking To Aajtak, Gavaskar urged the Indian fans to have patience with this team while also talking about the back of balance in the current squad.

The Current Team Has Lacked Flexibility: Sunil Gavaskar

“There is only one reason why this team has been left disappointed in ICC tournaments (ODI and T20I). If you look at the teams that won the 1983 and 2011 World Cups or even the 1985 World Championship of Cricket-winning side, they were all full of outstanding all rounders” said Gavaskar.

Talking about India’s 2011 World Cup squad he said that the likes of Yuvraj Singh and Suresh Raina provided balance to the squad as they could bat and ball equally well.

“There were many batters who could bowl and the bowlers could bat. The numbers 6,7 and 8 requires all-rounders which all these victorious teams had. The likes of Yuvraj Singh and Suresh Raina could bowl and bat very well. This is the one shortcoming that the Indian team has over the past two or three years, as a result of which the captain has not had many options and the team has lacked flexibility,” Gavaskar said while responding to a viewer’s question over lack of balance in this Indian side.

Venkatesh Iyer is the designated all-rounder in the ongoing series against South Africa. However, he was not used to the ball in the first game by KL Rahul. He batted at number six in the line-up scoring just two off 7 balls. Some cricket experts are of the opinion that he should open the innings for India as he did for KKR in the IPL and was successful.

India play South Africa in the second ODI in Paarl on January 21. They need to win this game to keep the series alive and take it to a decider in Cape Town on January 23.

Also Read: SA vs IND: India’s Predicted Playing XI Against South Africa– South Africa vs India 2022, 2nd ODI