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“You need better skills…”: Kapil Dev uncovers the truth behind India’s red-ball struggles

Poulomi Chakraborty

Kapil Dev on India's recent struggle (Source: @SPORTYVISHAL/x.com, @therealkapildev/x.com)Kapil Dev on India's recent struggle (Source: @SPORTYVISHAL/x.com, @therealkapildev/x.com)

After India’s brutal whitewash against South Africa, the entire team is under fire, but no one’s facing the heat like head coach Gautam Gambhir. While criticizing Gambhir, fans even started raising questions about his future as Team India’s head coach.

From fans to experts, tearing apart the former Indian batter, and Kapil Dev also joined the discussion. Weighing in on the chaos, the legendary ex-skipper dropped a powerful piece of advice that he believes can pull India out of this ongoing struggle.

Kapil Dev drops a wake-up call for the Indian side

In the past, Team India faced several Test defeats, but nothing comes close to the recent disappointing outing against South Africa. On Protea turf, India’s so-called strength against spin was brutally exposed. In front of South Africa’s spin attack, India’s batting lineup crumbled, and the series ended as a nightmare.

Since the horrible series defeat, the criticism was harsh on the side, and fans put coach Gautam Gambhir in hot water. As a question raised on Gambhir’s future as Team India’s Test coach, former World Cup-winning skipper exposed the real issues. Speaking to the Sportstar, Kapil Dev highlighted the importance of patience as a key to success in the longest format.

“We are more occupied with T20s and ODIs, which means the batters hardly encounter bowler-friendly pitches. On surfaces offering a lot of help to spin and seam, you need patience and a different set of skills to thrive. Once you are ready to play on those pitches, your mindset affects how you tackle them. You do not have batters like Rahul Dravid and VVS Laxman, who knew how to stay at the wicket. Batting in Tests is about staying in the middle,” he said.


“You need better skills to tackle spin than to play pace, but it depends on the state of the pitch. If the turn or bounce is vicious, it becomes very difficult. Remember, footwork plays an important role. If your temperament is to go and hit like Rishabh Pant, it is different. You cannot ask Pant to defend. He is a genuine match-winner. He will go and hit the ball. He is not going to bat 100 balls to make 20. When he hits a six, we all go gaga. Do you tell him not to hit them? He is a batter who can demolish the opposition,” he added.

Real answers rise from the domestic grind

Meeting the Proteas in the red-ball format, Indian batters failed to craft an impactful innings. Chasing big shots at the wrong moments, they kept throwing wickets away and paid the price. Weighing in on the crisis, Kapil Dev stressed one hard truth that India must return to domestic cricket to rebuild their red-ball grit.

“I was surprised that India lost to New Zealand and South Africa at home, but we should have prepared better. Test cricket is different. You ask a person like me to defend, it will not work. But you ask someone like Ravi Shastri to bat the whole day, he will do it. Jimmy Amarnath and Sunil Gavaskar could stay in the middle for the entire day. They had the temperament because they played a lot of domestic cricket,” he said.

After a forgettable outing in the Test series, Team India has shifted their focus to the white-ball format. With the first ODI against South Africa on November 30, the Men in Blue are desperate for a fiery comeback.