ICC Men’s T20 World Cup
Chennai, Feb 25: India’s batting coach Sitanshu Kotak backed out-of-form opener Abhishek Sharma to regain his rhythm but did not rule out a tactical rejigging of the top-order, including playing Sanju Samson, in the must-win T20 World Cup Super 8 match against Zimbabwe here on Thursday.
Coming into the ICC showpiece in blazing form, Abhishek has found the going tough so far, scoring a mere 15 runs from four matches at an average of 3.75 and a strike-rate of 75.
But Kotak did not doubt the quality of the left-hander, who had to miss the group match against Namibia with a stomach bug.
“Abhishek’s health was a little bad, and after that, there wasn’t that much momentum. But in the last game (vs SA), he looked good, and over-thinking about one individual, personally, I never liked that,” Kotak said during the pre-match press conference.
“If we focus so much on one person, then obviously, that person also will be under pressure. When he was scoring 80, 70, 90 in 30 balls or 100 in 40, 50 balls, that time nobody was discussing.
“Our job is to keep him in a good frame of mind. Once he starts hitting the ball again, you’ll see the same Abhishek again. Now, in T20s, nobody can give a guarantee that he will do it in the next match. So, I think it’s not far (Abhishek getting a big score),” he added.
But Abhishek’s struggle against off-spinners in this event has been obvious. He has even got out to a rookie like Aryan Dutt of the Netherlands.
So, is Sanju Samson in reckoning for the game against Zimbabwe to take on the spinners in the African outfit?
Kotak did not deny that team management is pondering over the option but did not commit to the nature of the changes.
“There can be changes, yes, because two left-handers are opening, number three is left-handed, and opposition is bowling spin. I personally don’t think there is any problem in that but because we lost the last game (against South Africa), we lost a wicket in the first over…obviously, any team would think,” he said.
“We’ll see how it goes because we never decide the team too early. And obviously, it’s not fair to start telling your planning in advance. But there will be thoughts,” he added.
The Saurashtra stalwart also refused to read too much into the sight of Samson batting ahead of Abhishek at nets here.
“So, one thing that is normal in every net, Abhishek doesn’t bat to start with. Okay, he always bats in a second and a third pair (of batters). So, that’s one thing. Sanju would normally always bat up if we have that space because Abhishek doesn’t bat first up. And Sanju is the third opener and a wicketkeeper.
“So, he bats anywhere. Sometimes he wants to do some drills and he goes behind and does things. So, that’s not an indication (of Samson’s inclusion). Yes, definitely there will be thought about playing him. But nets don’t give any indication,” he added.
The other concern for the Indian team has been the underwhelming strike rate of No.3 batter Tilak Varma (118) which robbed India of the momentum that Ishan Kishan gave.
However, Kotak did not find any fault with Tilak’s approach.
“There are no issues with Tilak because in the Pakistan game, our target (while batting first) was 175, and on that wicket that was good enough. Ishan gave a good start. The ball was spinning there (in Colombo). So, any team wouldn’t want to go 3-4 wickets at a time,” he said.
“So. for Tilak also it is a matter of two boundaries. Sometimes a batsman doesn’t get those balls. If he is at 34-35 in the 30th or 32nd ball, or at 28 in the 26th ball, if he gets one boundary, two boundaries and a six, then he will get a move on.
“So, I don’t think there is a question of defending the ball. Neither does he have any such instruction nor does he think so himself. So, there is no tension over Tilak or Abhishek,” he added.
India’s T20 stars face unfamiliar high-pressure situation
Since winning the T20 World Cup in 2024, this India T20 team has seemed like it has been competing only against itself. They won 31 out of 41 matches between the two World Cups and contributed three of the 11 highest totals in the format in the time.
India’s dominance in ICC tournaments is just as stark. They had won 17 consecutive matches in both white-ball formats. That streak broke against South Africa on Sunday and all of a sudden India are not certain of making the semifinals of a home World Cup.
This is not something India are used to, they haven’t faced such a game in an ICC tournament since the 2021 T20 World Cup; particularly their young batters whose success has been built on taking high risks and pulling them off.
“See, obviously, World Cup in India, there will be pressure,” Kotak said. “I am a big believer that any international game you play, even I have played some ordinary district game, when you go to bat, you will feel pressure.
“If you don’t feel that anxiety, it means you are not playing cricket. So that anxiety, you learn to deal with it from the start of your career.
“And this is a big-pressure game, obviously, when you are representing a country in a World Cup in India. A lot of expectation, but I honestly believe that for a professional, that’s part of his life, and we should deal with that in a positive manner.”
Most of India’s squad has been involved in IPL playoff matches, including some who are currently short of runs like Abhishek and Tilak.
“Just because we lost one game and have not got (a good opening) partnership, people talk more about it, but I honestly think they all are good enough to handle that pressure and we have to. If we want to win the World Cup, we have to handle that pressure. If we can’t, then it’s tough.
“And I don’t believe that there is anything this team cannot handle. So it’s just, I am personally looking for that momentum. Once we start getting that momentum again, if we do it from tomorrow, I think they will be picking up at the right time. So I am looking at it that way.” (Agencies)
