Team India clinched the T20i series against the Aussies after failing in the ODIs in the land of the Kangaroos. Virat Kohli and Co. now have a mammoth of a challenge in front of them in the name of the much-awaited Tests. Indians sufficed well in the T20 but failed miserably in the ODI series. India’s bowling attack was clearly not up to the mark as skipper Virat Kohli was left with very few options to pick from the set of bowlers in the playing XI.
Suresh Raina Points Out India’s Weak Spot
Citing to India’s limited bowling option, former Indian cricketer Suresh Raina opined that it is very important for the batsmen to bowl. Being an exceptional batsman, Suresh Raina also propelled well as a bowler. The southpaw came handy for MS Dhoni whenever the Indian skipper wanted to remove the extra overs in between the games. Not only Raina, but players like Sachin Tendulkar, Virender Sehwag and Yuvraj Singh were also fruitful in the bowling department.
However, the current Indian squad does not have this kind of versatility in their haversack. Players like Shikar Dhawan, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer and Mayank Agarwal are far from being called decent bowlers. Adding to that, Virat Kohli is restricted from using Hardik Pandya as a bowler due to his recent back injury.
“It is very important for a batsman to bowl and a bowler to bat, it is always useful for the team,” Raina said at the launch of the ‘FrontRow’ app.
“It is very important for any captain that a batsman chips in with 4-5 overs and just slows the proceedings before your best bowler is back in the attack,” he added.
“Sachin paaji bowled, Viru bhai took a lot of wickets. Yuvi paaji helped us win the World Cup with the momentum,” Raina said.
“When we used to play tournaments in the villages, to be in the team, we had to bowl alongside batting otherwise we weren’t selected.
“Fielding had to be good as we didn’t know if we’d get a chance to bat or not. Bowling is arduous, no one likes to do it. But then the captain gets a choice that this player can bowl,” he added.
