Sunil Gavaskar Has 'Insightful' Tips for Indian batters To Tackle Spin-Friendly Pitches
Kohli in action [AP Photos]
Former Indian opener, Sunil Gavaskar, has shared sagacious advice to Indian batters to combat the challenging spin-friendly pitches in India. The veteran's counsel comes on the heels of a deplorable performance by the Indian batsmen in the third Test held in Indore, which culminated in a nine-wicket defeat.
Gavaskar expounded that standing upright provides no advantage to the batter on turning tracks. Instead, he advocates that batters should adopt a slightly crouched posture akin to that of a wicket-keeper to better contend with the deviation and bounce of the ball.
“Standing upright does not give that advantage on turners. They would be able to meet the deviation and bounce better if you crouch a little like a keeper,” Gavaskar told Indian Express.
The erstwhile cricketer elucidated that bending slightly confers benefits to the batter as it positions them closer to the ball which also enables them to discern whether to play the ball on the front or back foot.
Furthermore, the legendary batsman expounded that if a batter intends to defend the ball better, they must maintain the slightest grip with their bottom hand on the handle while the top hand guides the bat. He noted that the bottom hand dictates the speed, so if the batter seeks to play a dead bat, they must have a slight hold with the bottom hand, while the top hand brings the bat down straight or across the pads.
Gavaskar's counsel suggests that adopting a slightly crouched stance would be beneficial for the batters to manoeuvre the ball on challenging spin-friendly tracks in India. The fourth and final test between India and Australia is set to commence on March 9 at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad.
The hosts must secure a win in this game by all means necessary, as failure to do so would leave them with the only option of relying on New Zealand to prevent a whitewash by Sri Lanka.