Cricket legend Ian Chappell highlighted Team India’s shortcomings and Virat KohliAfter being whitewashed 0-3 at home to New Zealand, their performances this season have not been up to high standards. series.
The former Australia captain pointed to the ill-fated dismissal of Virat Kohli in the first innings of the Pune Test, using it as an example to highlight India’s wider problems with footwork and decision-making. Lack of confidence and poor batting selection have plagued India’s batting throughout the three-match Test series against New Zealand, believes Ian Chappell.
Ian Chappell criticizes India’s shock home Test series defeat against New Zealand
Faced with a 25-run defeat in the third and final Test match at the Wankhede Stadium on November 3, India’s batting line-up crumbled under New Zealand’s relentless pressure.
This shock defeat handed New Zealand a historic 3-0 Test series whitewash and made them the fourth team after England, Australia and the West Indies to whitewash India in three or more Test series.
Also Read: Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli’s days BCCI begins strict measures after New Zealand whitewash.
The New Zealand spinners exploited every flaw in the pitch and it baffled the home team more than the visitors. After the Mumbai Test match, Ian Chappell didn’t hold back, highlighting the apparent lack of legs from key players, including batting talisman Virat Kohli.
In the second Test in Pune, Virat Kohli’s dismissal on a simple ball that misfired in the first innings. Mitchell SantnerMaking no effort to fully meet his defence, the innings showcased the difficulties India’s batting unit faced against the Kiwi attack.
Ian Chappell pointed out that Virat Kohli’s failure to judge the movement of the ball exposed Team India’s lack of decisive footwork, which led to the collapse of the innings. The timing of this collapse could not have been worse for India, with the Border-Gavaskar Trophy 2024-25 just a few weeks away.
In a column for ESPNCricinfo, Ian Chappell wrote: “The dismissal of star batsman Virat Kohli in the first game was a perfect example of India’s lack of decisive footwork. Kohli was clean with Santner’s delivery, which he could have hit full if the batter had strayed even slightly from his crease. However, instead of Kohli’s lack of decisive footwork being blamed, his shot selection has been questioned.
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The Australia legend noted that India’s poor form had only added to the concerns, with the Test series loss at home revealing their vulnerability to disciplined spin bowling, warning that this performance could let them down on harder pitches.
Chappell further noted that “Horrible displays against New Zealand exposed weaknesses in India’s batting. There’s no good time to hit the fray, but ahead of a tough tour of Australia, it’s asking for trouble.
As for the supposed important sweep shot, who is the sensible coach who preaches that the reverse sweep is safer to play in Test cricket than to use decisive footwork? The threat of a reverse sweep in Tests was adequately exposed by the senseless dismissal of Yashasvi Jaiswal in the Mumbai Test.
He signed off by saying that the reverse sweep can be a dangerous shot in Tests because it is premeditated, while insisting that precise footwork matches the actual length of the delivery. Chappell suggested that the modern tendency is to rely on too decisive footwork to negate good spin bowling because these players are good at all kinds of sweep shots.
