Sunil Gavaskar slams Indian batters for being ‘overconfident’ against South Africa

Former Indian cricketer and commentator Sunil Gavaskar has termed the Indian batters ‘overconfident’ in the 188-run chase against South Africa as they suffered a 76-run defeat in Ahmedabad, on Sunday, February 22.

Speaking exclusively on JioStar, Gavaskar reckoned that the Indian batters threw their bats at almost everything and lost their wickets at regular intervals as South Africa clearly outsmarted Indian batters, bagging a well-deserved win.

"Having seen how Brevis and Miller built their partnership, that was the approach needed from the Indian batters. The Indian batters did not do that. They came out with overconfidence, threw their bat at everything and lost wickets. South Africa clearly outsmarted India and it was a well-deserved win for them,” Gavaskar said on JioStar.

Furthermore, Gavaskar also slammed the approach taken by the batters like Tilak Varma and Ishan Kishan when the required run rate was 9.5 an over, adding that 55-60 runs would have been enough in the powerplay overs instead of 70 runs.

"Tilak Varma has been a very street-smart batter. But I was disappointed with his approach in this game. Ishan Kishan lost his wicket in the first over. The required rate was around 9.5 runs per over, not 15,” he stated.

"So, Tilak could have given himself more time. At the other end, Abhishek Sharma had back-to-back ducks. So, the responsibility was on Tilak to stick around, build a partnership, and get past the first six overs, but he failed to do that,” he asserted.

Additionally, Gavaskar also reckoned that Axar Patel would replace the under-performing Washington Sundar in the playing XI when India takes on Zimbabwe in their second Super8 clash at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai on Thursday, February 26.

"I would look at bringing Axar Patel back into the playing XI, keeping in mind the lack of too many left-handed batters in Zimbabwe's line-up. I feel Washington Sundar will be the one to miss out. He is not being used properly. Against South Africa, he bowled just two overs and did nothing with the bat. Against the Netherlands, he bowled four overs but took no wickets. I think the time has run out for Washington Sundar. Axar Patel will surely replace him,” he concluded.

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