Tezzbuzz Desk- In the five-match T20 series played between India and West Indies, the Indian bowling attack could not perform as per expectations. During the series, the West Indies batsmen maintained pressure on the Indian bowlers. The Caribbean team scored more than 200 runs in three innings, while scoring more than 240 in two separate matches. This performance of the Indian bowlers has raised questions on the team's strategy and selection of playing-11. Former Indian captain Sunil Gavaskar has expressed concern about the bowling of Team India. He believes that the strategy of including additional batsmen to strengthen the batting can prove costly for the team. According to Gavaskar, if the number of specialist bowlers in the team is less, then it may be difficult to stop the opposition batsmen in high-scoring matches.
West Indies had scored 247 runs in the fourth T20 match of the series. In that match, the Indian team had only three specialist bowlers in the form of Mayank Yadav, Arshdeep Singh and Prince Yadav. For the remaining overs, the team had to depend on all-rounders Nitish Kumar Reddy, Axar Patel and Naman Dheer. According to Gavaskar, such a strategy limits the bowling options and the opposition team can take advantage of it. Gavaskar suggested that the Indian team should go with at least four specialist bowlers in their playing-11. Apart from this, there should be bowling all-rounders as fifth and sixth options, who can also contribute in batting. Citing the example of Akshar Patel and Naman Dheer, he said that the team should keep the roles of the players clear.
Gavaskar also raised questions on the strategy of finding a replacement for Hardik Pandya. He says that it is not easy to replace an all-rounder like Hardik. If a player of his caliber is not available, the team should give responsibility to a player according to his actual abilities rather than forcibly fitting him into the same role. He also mentioned the role of Naman Dhir. After the last match of the series, Indian captain Shreyas Iyer also accepted the need to improve his bowling. Iyer said that if there had been better bowling in the second and fourth matches, the results could have been different. While praising the batting of West Indies, he also praised the performance of Shai Hope. For the Indian team, this series is a signal to rethink the bowling combination. Batting depth is important in T20 cricket, but the role of specialist bowlers is also important to prevent big scores. Now it remains to be seen what changes the team management makes in the playing-11 in the upcoming matches keeping in mind Gavaskar's advice.