‘Clarity with the captain is a must’: Former India pacer says desired level of communication not happening in Indian team
“I think that the communication in the team should be on a good level. The kind of communication which is required is not happening, there should be clarity regarding what is happening,” Madan Lal told ANI.
There has been a lot of controversy in the past month regarding the level of communication in the Indian team management. Rohit Sharma was initially left out from the Indian squad for the tour of Australia due to an injury he picked up during the Indian Premier League 2020. But Rohit played three matches in the Indian Premier League (IPL) after being advised two weeks rest because of his hamstring injury.
He then went to the National Cricket Academy (NCA) for rehab rather than flying to Australia with the rest of the Indian players. But it hasn’t stopped the speculations regarding the whole ordeal.
Before the start of the ODI series, Indian skipper Virat Kohli had said that the waiting game on Rohit’s injury is not ideal. However, on the very same day, the BCCI issued a release stating that Rohit did not travel to Australia as he had to attend to his ailing father.
Former India pacer and current member of the Cricket Advisory Committee (CAC) Madan Lal on Tuesday said that the kind of communication which is required among players and staff at the senior level is currently not happening in the Indian team.
“Whatever Virat Kohli said in his press conference that is absolutely correct, I back him for the same because clarity with the captain is a must as the leader runs the team. Both coach and captain should be aware of what is happening with their players. Only Rohit or his franchise (Mumbai Indians) can answer why he played for the franchise when he was just 70 per cent fit. I think that the communication in the team should be on a good level. The kind of communication which is required is not happening, there should be clarity regarding what is happening,” Madan Lal told ANI.
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Giving his take on the number of injuries that have taken place over the last month, Lal said: “See, on one hand, you talk about bench strength and on the other hand you talk about injuries. If two players are not there, you think there is no team, injuries will keep on coming if players don’t undergo the proper rehab period. There are other players too who can do the job, injuries are part and parcel of the game.”
India have already lost the ODI series against Australia as the side came up short in the first two matches of the series. In both the ODIs, the Men in Blue conceded more than 370 runs. Kohli’s side lost the first ODI by 66 runs, while in the second, India lost by 51 runs.
“Our bowling did not click and if you do not get early wickets, there are chances that opposition will get a high score on the board. Due to the wicket conditions in Australia, if you don’t get breakthroughs, the spinners will also struggle in the middle. Last time, there were no David Warner and Steve Smith in the team and these two are the world’s top batters and when top players come into the squad, it changes the scenario. In batting, we did well but chasing a big total is a bit tough, and when you try to attack chances of losing wickets become high,” said Lal.
“Wicket-to-wicket bowling should be done in my point of view but at this time, the problem is that Indian bowlers are struggling to take wickets early on. We are also not fielding well and that is not ideal as the bowlers always need the support of their fielders,” he added.
The final ODI of the three-match series will be played on Wednesday at Canberra.
(with ANI inputs)
