The former captain of the Indian side, Sunil Gavaskar, felt that India had so much quality in their pace bowling department for their five-match Test series in the Border Gavaskar Trophy (BGT) 2024-25 down under, and that could have saved them to keep the generational talent like the premier pacer of the side, Jasprit Bumrah, away from being overcooked.
Sunil Gavaskar, during a recent interaction, held him back from mentioning the names of the potential candidates, who would be diluted in the bowling attack going forward. Bumrah, across the first nine innings of the series, bowled more than 150 overs to celebrate 32 wickets in nine innings at an average of 13.06 and a strike rate of 28.37 with the help of two four-wicket hauls and three five-wicket hauls at the best bowling figure of 6/76 in an inning.
The next best for the visitors in the bowling department was Mohammad Siraj, the workhorse of the side, who ended the series as the fourth-highest wicket-taker with 20 scalps in ten innings at an average of 31.15 and a strike rate of 47.15 with the best of 4/98 during the second day-night pink-ball affair at the Adelaide Oval.
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“India has got loads of promising pacers who are waiting for an opportunity. Yes, Bumrah should not be overburdened, and if others step up, then we can have an attack that can win matches at any opportunity.” Sunil Gavaskar expressed this during the interaction on PTI.
Sunil Gavaskar praises Ajit Agarkar and Gautam Gambhir for Nitish Reddy’s selection
The 75-year-old former batter of the side also reflected on how some of the talented players have been emerging from the domestic circuit, and it would be vital for the selectors to keep an eye on them to give them a fair chance at the international level.
Karnataka’s lanky pace bowler, Prasidh Krishna, was part of the fifth and final Test at the Sydney Cricket Ground (SCG), where they collected six wickets at an average of 17.83 in 27 overs with the best of 3/42 in an inning. The all-rounder Nitish Reddy also bowled in patches for his six wickets in nine innings.
“Unless they are given a chance, how will we know if those doing well in the Ranji Trophy will do well at the international level? Here’s where good selections come in.” Sunil Gavaskar highlighted.
Akash Deep also bowled well in the third and fourth Test matches at the Gabba and Melbourne to pick up five wickets in four innings. The young batting sensational, Yashasvi Jaiswal, who has gone through the domestic red-ball circuit in the Ranji Trophy, displayed his carnage as he finished as the second leading run-getter in the series with 391 runs in ten innings at an average of 43.44 with the help of two half-centuries and one century.
Sunil Gavaskar praised the head of the selectors, Akash Deep, and his team for finding the potential in Reddy, who smashed a brilliant century, his first at the international level, in the Boxing Day Test. Gautam Gambhir, the head coach of the Indian side, was lauded for backing the youngster.
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“We see our faces in the mirror every day, and since we do that to us, we don’t notice the changes that have come over the years. Only when we see photos or videos of earlier days do we notice the changes.” The Mumbai-born shed light.
“It’s the that we look to make changes needed to look at our best. To do that, however, we need to take a long and honest look at ourselves again.” Sunil Gavaskar concluded.