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VVS Laxman opens up on the struggles of Team India’s young players
By SMCS - Jul 31, 2021 12:15 pm
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Former India player VVS Laxman has recently opened up how the young Indian team failed to face spin well on slow pitches in Sri Lanka. And, he believes it is definitely a matter of concern. According to him, they seem to try only power-hitting. As a result, they failed to do well against quality spin as well.

Indian players
9 Indian players missed the second T20I

However, after winning the ODI series, Team India lost the T20I series by 1-2 as most of their experienced players didn’t take part after COVID-19 hit the camp. And, Laxman shared his column for the Times of India: “What this tour has done is highlighted how much work lies ahead of India’s young batsmen. Among the areas of concern are the inability to convert starts to big scores, and a marked decline in standards while playing quality spin on slow pitches.”

He continued: “If anything, the latter has been a problem for a while now. Young batsmen focus so much on power-hitting and playing pace that tackling spin has gone out of fashion. To arrest this disturbing trend, it is incumbent upon coaches at the NCA and those with state teams to impress upon their wards the ingredients required to maneuver the ball by bringing soft hands into play, among other things.”

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However, after Krunal Pandya was tested positive, Team India continued the series and they played with only five batsmen and scored 132 for 5 in the second T20I and 81 for 8 in the third match as well – for a losing cause. But, VVS Laxman claimed that it was a missed opportunity for all the youngsters in the team.

india sri lanka
Team India dominated against Sri Lanka in the first T20I

He explained: “From an Indian perspective, some of the young batsmen will rue the opportunities squandered. True, India were reduced to just five specialist batsmen once Krunal Pandya tested positive for Covid and consequently they lost nine players, and pitches for the last two T20s were far from ideal for the format. That said, adversity provides the best platform to exhibit character.”

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VVS Laxman concluded: “Spinners Kuldeep Yadav and Varun Chakravarthy had decent outings but the one who caught my eye was Rahul Chahar. The leggie was aggressive, attacking and penetrative, traits that should certainly bolster his chances for the T20 World Cup later in the year.”