India’s recent humiliating 3-0 whitewash against New Zealand at home has sparked a firestorm of criticism, with fans demanding the retirement of veteran players like Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, Ravichandran Ashwin, and Ravindra Jadeja. The team’s dismal performance with both bat and ball has put the seniors under intense scrutiny.
However, former India wicketkeeper-batter Dinesh Karthik has urged fans to exercise patience and not rush to judgment after just one series loss. “What is the hurry boss? One bad series and already calling for the heads. I don’t think so,” Karthik said on Cricbuzz.
Karthik believes that the calls for retirement are premature and that the players deserve a longer leash. “I think, if they don’t do well in the next 10 Test matches, then we will come back to this question and then it becomes a fair question, considering its going to be another domestic season. For the moment, I don’t think we need to group anyone anywhere,” he added.
Karthik acknowledged that India’s performance against New Zealand was subpar in all departments. “A bit of everything. Our bowling was not up to the mark. Our spinners, especially the experienced ones, didn’t gave a great series. Batting, without a doubt, we lack in ability to play spin,” he said.
The Indian batters have struggled to cope with spin bowling in recent times, a weakness that was ruthlessly exploited by the New Zealanders. “The defence game overall around the world has definitely decreased because of the white-ball formats that goes without saying but the Indian players have struggled to cope against spin,” Karthik observed.
India’s next assignment is the Border-Gavaskar Trophy against Australia Down Under, starting on November 22 in Perth. The series will be a stern test for the Indian team, and the performance of the senior players will be under the microscope once again.
