from india Clash in the ongoing T20I series against England The series continued even after suffering a crushing defeat by nine wickets in the fourth match in Bristol on Thursday. The defeat handed England an unassailable 3–0 lead in the five-match series as the hosts easily chased down India’s modest total of 158/7 with 37 balls to spare.
Former Indian wicketkeeper-batsman after disappointing performance saba kareem Expressed concern over the team’s batting strategy. Speaking during a discussion on JioHotstar, Karim questioned several strategic decisions taken by the Indian think tank, especially the decision to promote. Shivam Dubey After an early collapse instead of sending in a better suited batsman to rebuild the innings.
Karim believes that India abandoned their aggressive plan after losing the first three wickets and failed to properly utilize the batting depth available in the team. He argued that Dubey’s role is that of a specialist power-hitter, and not someone expected to reconstruct the innings in difficult conditions.
According to Karim, Dubey should ideally bat during the final overs, where his ability to clear the ropes and score at a strike rate close to 200 can have maximum impact. Instead, India sent him in at No. 5 in the seventh over with the score at 48/3, a stage where the innings required consistency with calculated aggression.
“You promoted Shivam Dubey, but what was his job? His job was to go and play big shots. Why is Shivam Dubey in the team? His role is to be a power hitter.” Kareem said.
The former selector also asked why the vice-captain? Tilak Verma Instead he was not promoted, which suggests he was better equipped to handle the pressure and produce innings with Shreyas Iyer.
India failed to recover after early collapse
India’s innings never fully recovered after losing three wickets in the powerplay. While Iyer held one end firmly with an unbeaten 80 off 49 balls, the visiting team struggled to maintain momentum at the other end.
Dubey could only manage 22 runs from 23 balls, an innings that further slowed India’s progress in the middle overs. Karim believed that the batting order could have been managed more effectively, with Tilak taking responsibility for integration while preserving Dubey’s finishing role for the final overs.
England easily achieved the target of 159 runs and won the series with nine wickets remaining. The result has intensified scrutiny of India’s tactical decisions, with the team management likely to re-evaluate their batting strategy ahead of the final T20I.
Also read: Fans criticize India after England seal series with stunning win in fourth T20I
