Cricketer-turned-expert Sunil Gavaskar has questioned India skipper Suryakumar Yadav's tactics to tweak the batting order against Bangladesh in the Asia Cup Super Four clash on Wednesday, September 24, in Dubai. The legendary opener stated that Suryakumar should have come earlier to bat and got some runs, especially after his first-ball duck against Pakistan, instead of promoting Shivam Dube at the number three spot.
India registered a commanding 41-run victory over Bangladesh and sealed a spot in the finals of the Continental Cup, keeping their unbeaten record intact. However, the reshuffled batting order backfired, with both Dube and the India skipper falling for low scores, exposing huge concerns in the form of middle-order batters.
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While the Mumbai batter's leadership has been exceptional, his form with the bat has been very patchy, with the veteran not scoring a 50 in the last 10-plus T20Is. Gavaskar highlighted that the India skipper should have focused on getting his rhythm and confidence back rather than experimenting.
"I think, sometimes, when you're looking to give batters some practice, you tend to tweak the batting order a little. But I don't think there should be too much change, because that can affect the team's rhythm. Like everything else—batting, bowling—you need rhythm. Similarly, the batting order also needs a rhythm. Occasionally, you can push someone up the order depending on the circumstances, but to send a finisher like Dube to number three was a bit tricky. Dube is usually a finisher at five or six, and moving him up was particularly difficult because Suryakumar, as captain, hadn't scored runs in the previous game," Gavaskar said.
Notably, the batting tweak also saw all-rounder Hardik Pandya striding out to bat number four, Tilak Varma at six, and Axar Patel promoted to seven, with no presence of Sanju Samson, who was pushed down the order. However, the changes did not yield positive results, as a horrible mix-up between Suryakumar and Abhishek Sharma proved costly.
Gavaskar's blunt take on Suryakumar Yadav's dismissal
Reflecting on India skipper's dismissal, the expert was straightforward in his assessment and stated he should have been in the middle to find his groove.
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"It was important for the captain to come in and get a few runs. He came in at number four and got out playing the same shot again. That is normally a very productive shot for him, no question about it. But when you're struggling, maybe you shouldn't play it until you've really got a feel for the surface. Once you've settled and scored 25 or 30 runs, then you can play that shot. I think that was probably one area where India faltered a little, though luckily the bowlers saved their skin."
