After a humiliating loss by 72 runs in the first Test, Team India is gearing up for the second Test at Centurion. Many former greats including Kiran More admitted the Ajinkya Rahane and KL Rahul should be drafted in the first XI for the first Test.
“You have to bring Rahane and Rahul back in the playing XI for the next Test. It also depends on whether the team opts for five or six batsmen, but after this Test match, it is certain that India needs to strengthen their batting,” former chief of selectors Kiran More said to TOI.
Former India wicket-keeper further felt that the Cape Town Test was India’s best chance to win in the series.
“There couldn’t have been a better way to win a Test after the bowlers did a phenomenal job to bring India back into the game. Another partnership of 50 runs would have sealed the game in India’s favor,” More stated further.
More also raised questions about Shikhar Dhawan’s technique while playing short pitch deliveries.
Notably, none of the top five batsmen could get to the 50-run mark in the first Test.
“Your impact point should be close to the body,” former Indian batsman Pravin Amre said when asked about the ideal way to bat in South African conditions.
“When we toured South Africa, we didn’t have such a bowling attack like the current team. In fact, it was a dream to think about getting the opposition out below 140. Therefore, the team should remain positive – like Hardik Pandya – and keep hitting loose deliveries. That is the only way to score in South Africa,” Amre added further.
Amre further cited AB de Villiers style of batting as the perfect example to follow.
More further mentioned that the team needs to show more character in the rest of the two Tests.
“That is the way Virat Kohli is. Everyone has a style of his own. Virat’s aggression on the field doesn’t really affect the morale of the team. The fact of the matter is that we lost the opening Test and need to show more character in the rest of the two Tests to win the series,” More concluded.
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