"Prithvi Shaw is going to struggle unless..." - Sunil Gavaskar offers valuable advice to opener ahead of IPL 2024 

Former Indian cricketer Sunil Gavaskar offered valuable advice to young opener Prithvi Shaw ahead of the 2024 Indian Premier League (IPL). Sunil Gavaskar said that Prithvi Shaw must develop his back-foot technique to excel in the upcoming season of the IPL.

Prithvi Shaw was retained by the Delhi Capitals despite his underwhelming performance in the IPL 2023. The right-handed batter scored only 106 runs in eight innings at an average of 13.25. The Delhi team also struggled in the season, finishing ninth in the points table.

Time For Prithvi Shaw To Step Up – Sunil Gavaskar

During a Star Sports discussion, Sunil Gavaskar said Prithvi Shaw should elevate his performance for the Delhi Capitals in the IPL 2024. He emphasized the importance of Shaw developing his backfoot game, noting that teams will exploit his weakness.

“Time for him to step up but what has happened is that a lot of teams have found that because of his predominant movement onto the front foot and that high backlift, they go the short way with him,” Gavaskar told Star Sports.

“So unless he starts to learn to play off the back foot, he is going to struggle. If the pitches are such where the ball doesn’t come up, then it will be fantastic for him,” he added.

The Mumbai batter was sidelined for several months after sustaining a knee injury during county cricket in Northamptonshire. The young opener missed the domestic tournaments, such as the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy and the Vijay Hazare Trophy, due to injury.

The 24-year-old cricketer returned during the latter stages of the Ranji Trophy league. He scored a century for Mumbai against Chattisgarh in only his second match back. He amassed an impressive 159 runs off 185 deliveries, including 18 boundaries and three sixes.

Need Somebody TO Fill In Rishabh Pant’s Shoes – Sunil Gavaskar

Sunil Gavaskar questioned the Delhi Capitals’ strategies for IPL 2024, especially concerning the acquisition of Harry Brook. He highlighted the challenge of filling Rishabh Pant’s role, mentioning the pressure on the new wicketkeeper.

“It’s a little bit difficult to understand what they were looking to do. Clearly, you need somebody to fill in Rishabh Pant’s boots as a wicketkeeper, whether that’s going to be much of a pressure on this young man,” Gavaskar further added.

“Harry Brook wasn’t exactly a great success. He got a hundred last year but wasn’t exactly a great success in the IPL last year. So to pick him, it’s a little bit difficult to understand what was their strategy,” he concluded.

Harry Brook, who fetched a price tag of Rs 13.25 crore in the IPL 2023 auction, was secured by Delhi for Rs 4 crore. The decrease in his salary could be attributed to Brook’s lackluster performance in the previous IPL season, where he managed 190 runs in 11 matches

Rishabh Pant is set to make a comeback in the IPL 2024, but he may not be tasked with wicketkeeping duties. The Delhi Capitals made a significant investment of INR 7.2 crore to secure Kumar Kushagra as a backup option in the Indian wicketkeeping department.

Also read: “I wondered whether I…” – Prithvi Shaw reveals his confused state ahead of making Ranji Trophy comeback