Both Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli failed to make a mark with the bat as India suffered their first home Test series defeat in 12 years. (PTI)
Shouldn’t the national selectors have waited for the Pune Test to get over before announcing the team for the Border Gavaskar Trophy series starting November 22? Don’t players get punished for their failures any more, or do results no longer matter for selectors? The answer to these questions is a counter-question. Beyond the group that miserably lost the Test series against New Zealand, does India have worthy replacements? Not really, this is all we have and that is a real cause of concern for Indian cricket.
Those who took the field at Pune are the best of India’s Test talent pool. Since the selectors have closed the doors on the likes of Rahane and Pujara, there is no one in the reserves who even deserves a discussion in selection meetings. No youngster is banging on the door and that is because everyone has been let in. And since the ongoing series exposed India’s frailty in every department, India needs to go back to the drawing board.
It starts with Rohit Sharma’s captaincy. Ravi Shastri would repeatedly point out India’s defensive approach when bowling on Day 1 of the Pune Test. It was New Zealand’s 259 in the first innings on a spin-friendly track that proved decisive. In contrast, Tom Latham, with inferior spinners, was far more attacking and never allowed easy runs.
Be it Siraj or Akash Deep, Bumrah doesn’t have a world class bowling partner. The Kiwis also showed that even in India, Ashwin and Jadeja can be dealt with. As for batting, Rohit and Virat were woefully out of touch, their best years behind them. Yashaswi Jaiswal and Sarfaraz were the two bright spots but Gill disappointed. And when the touring batsmen Latham and Rachin Ravindra were the stars of the series and negotiated the conditions the best, problems for the hosts went deep. India’s young batsmen did have their moments but they were too flashy for the Test format. Latham and Rachin, in comparison, knew the rhythm of Tests better.
Next up is Australia away with a World Test Championship final berth at stake. India will take the flight to Australia with a prayer on their lips.
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