Former Indian chief selector Kris Srikkanth has launched a scathing attack on Shivam Dubey and the rest of the batting unit after the Indian national cricket team suffered a crushing four-wicket defeat against England in the second ODI in Cardiff on Thursday, July 16.
He was not happy with the performance of the Indian all-rounder and also questioned the batting approach of the entire Indian team as they faced a shocking batting collapse against England in the second ODI in Cardiff. Meanwhile, Ravichandran Ashwin defends Rohit Sharma, takes a dig at the selectors amid retirement talk.
Kris Srikkanth criticizes Team India and Shivam Dubey after Cardiff defeat
On 16 July, after England leveled the three-match ODI series 1–1, Kris Srikkanth said that the Indian batsmen made too many mistakes and failed to handle the England attack properly. He then turned his attention to Shivam Dubey, who put in another disappointing performance with the bat.
The left-handed batsman came to bat at number eight and was dismissed for a golden duck by Jofra Archer. Archer dismissed Dubey with a clever full delivery on the stumps on the very first ball of his innings.
Shivam Dubey expected a short ball, so he stayed in the crease and tried to hit it over the bowler. He misjudged the shot and Archer completed a simple return catch to dismiss him.
Interestingly, Shivam Dubey did not get a chance to bat in the first ODI as India chased the target easily with only seven batsmen. Nevertheless, he struggled during the T20I series against England, where he scored only 85 runs in four matches at an average of 21.25 and a strike rate below 131.
Srikanth raised questions on Shivam Dubey’s mentality after the golden duck in the second ODI.
Srikkanth said that Shivam Dubey was looking under pressure even before facing his first ball. He felt that the all-rounder was thinking too much about England’s short-ball attack and looked intimidated from the start, and this went against him. He also questioned that if Dubey was primarily selected as a batting all-rounder then why Washington Sundar and Axar Patel were sent to bat ahead of him.
Kris Srikkanth said in a video on his YouTube channel: “Sivam Dubey got out even before he came to the crease. He came to bat scared of the short ball. He kept thinking about the short ball and because of that, got caught out on a good length ball. And Sundar and Axar are batting in front of him. Shivam Dubey is just playing as an extra batsman.”
Kris Srikkanth criticizes India’s batting against England’s typical attack
The 1983 World Cup winner highlighted Ishan Kishan’s struggles against the short ball during the England tour. He also told that Sundar and Axar were troubled by short-pitch bowling.
The former Indian captain believes that the batting unit made England’s bowling attack look stronger than it actually was and played the wrong shots and lost their wickets in Cardiff. Meanwhile, ICC’s greed behind India vs Pakistan, 2027 World Cup format change: British media claims
Srikkanth further said, “England’s bowling is nothing lethal, but the Indian batsmen tried their best against players like Sam Curran and Will Jacks. The mindset of the Indian batsmen was conservative throughout. They all got out playing the wrong shots.”
Kris Srikkanth destroys England despite Cardiff’s win
The former Indian chief selector also criticized England’s batting line-up and said that Joe Root was the only main reason behind the successful chase of 234 runs. Srikkanth believes that India’s defeat is more worrying because England itself did not play the best cricket.
He signed off by saying, “England’s batting is also dreadful. Duckett is a bucket man against Bumrah, and Bethel has no chance at the top of the order. Joe Root is a one-man army for them. His partnership with Will Jacks saved them. Losing to a below-average team like England shows how average India are.”