Veteran commentator Sanjay Manjrekar added that the New Zealand-like conditions in Dubai could be responsible for India’s loss to the White Ferns in their first game of the 2024 Women’s T20 World Cup as well. He also stated that the result might have been different had the match been played in Sharjah instead of Dubai as well.
Reviewing the game on Star Sports, Manjrekar said, “The start was not good in bowling because the first one or two overs were very expensive, and even in batting. If I have to review this match, the conditions in Dubai for this match were suiting New Zealand a lot. If this match had been in Sharjah, the result might have been totally different because if you see this pitch, it seemed like they were not playing in Dubai but Dunedin and New Zealand made the most of it. They bowled very full. They didn’t bowl even a single short delivery.”
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However, none of the Indian batters played a steady knock, with Harmanpreet Kaur’s 14-ball 15 being the top score as well. Rosemary Mair
(4/19) and Lea Tahuhu (3/15) made the most of the seamer-friendly conditions to dismantle the Indian batting lineup. In the same discussion, Sanjay Manjrekar shared disappointment about the Indian batters’ mode of dismissals as well.
“The sort of shots they played, I am slightly disappointed with the way they go out. You could have fallen short of 160 because I feel this was a big score on that pitch, but the batters played similar shots and got out. Firstly, well done to New Zealand, the conditions were like New Zealand, and the Indian batters were trying too much to win the match with fours and sixes, and that too they were hitting straight, which was probably not the right shot on this pitch,” Manjrekar explained.
Meanwhile, Sanjay Manjrekar faced a backlash for making racist comments against North Indian players. The incident happened during the India vs New Zealand match, where Manjrekar, who is part of the Hindi commentary panel, was discussing India’s fielding coach Munish Bali, following which he faced the heat on social media.
Bali’s name was pointed out by the co-commentator, who informed that he was a former Punjab cricketer before becoming a coach. Manjrekar, however, was not aware of Bali but it was his response, which drew backlash from everyone. “Sorry, meine unko pehechana nahin. North ke players ke saath mere zyaada dhyaan nahin hota. (Sorry, I didn’t recognize him. I don’t pay a lot of attention to players from the North.),” Manjrekar was heard saying while commentating.
Here are a few reactions:
I've no interest in North Indian Cricketers
– Sanjay Manjrekar
Why so much hate ? pic.twitter.com/RBPkPvYuCJ— Sports_comedy (@sports_komedy) October 5, 2024
Sanjay Manjrekar said in a commentary that he has no interest in North Indian Cricketer.
Nothing new, I already knew that guy promotes racism
— Kartik Sehgal (@kartik_vlsi) October 4, 2024
