Ravi Shastri minces no words after India’s defeat against South Africa

Ravi Shastri also wants GautamGambhir to make the tough Axar-Sundar call.

India faced defeat against South Africa in the T20 World Cup Super 8’s opener match. India suffered a 76-run loss in Ahmedabad last Sunday, their heaviest defeat in the tournament. Former India legend Ravi Shastri minced no words in his assessment of India’s performance against South Africa. He reckoned the defending champions needed that jolt, with their semi-final hopes still alive.

Ravi Shastri reacts to India’s defeat against South Africa.

Speaking on The ICC Review, Ravi Shastri said it was better that India suffered the setback early in the tournament rather than later, leaving them time to reassess their plans for the remaining two Super 8 matches, against Zimbabwe in Chennai on Thursday and West Indies in Kolkata on March 1. He said, “I’m actually glad it’s happened early, especially against a team that’s tipped to make the semi-finals anyway. It might just be the shake-up India needed. It could also force them to rethink their strategy and the composition of the side going forward. I’m sure they’ll bounce back. They would have learned from that experience and won’t take things for granted. In the Super 8, if you lose another game, you’re really putting yourself under serious pressure.”

Ravi Shastri also weighed in on the debate over Axar-Sundar for the match.

Shastri also weighed in on the debate over Washington Sundar being picked ahead of vice-captainAxar Patel for the match against South Africa. While India termed it a tactical call, with Axar expected to return against Zimbabwe, who have five right-handers in their top seven, Shastri said the management could even field both spin all-rounders. He argued that doing so would preserve batting depth while providing an extra bowling option. He said, “I think they’ve got to bring him back. You need that experience. I’d say play both if you can, give yourself that extra option, because on any given day, one bowler is bound to have an off day. For example, VarunChakravarthy wasn’t at his best yesterday and paid the price for it. So you need that backup. That strengthens your No. 8. If Axar Patel is playing, he could bat at eight. You’ve got Hardik Pandya at five, ShivamDube at six, Washington Sundar at seven and Axar at eight. Axar can even bat at five if required.” He said head coach GautamGambhir would have to make the tough call of leaving out specialist finisher Rinku Singh from the line-up.

Shastri lastly said, “If eight batters can’t get the job done in T20 cricket, then something’s wrong, especially with that kind of firepower. Where you’re falling short is not giving yourself that extra bowling option, which I think is important. That might mean Rinku Singh misses out, but if he comes in, it should be in place of a specialist batter.”