‘No-balls not acceptable,’ Gambhir puts blame on Arshdeep’s long-layoff
Team India lost by 16 runs to Sri Lanka on Thursday in the second T20I in Pune of the three-match series on Thursday. Cricket experts put the blame on the large number of no-balls by Indian pacers as the main reason for India’s loss.
Sri Lanka were put to bat by India and riding on captain Dasun Shanaka’s 56 off 22 balls and opener Kusal Mendis’ quickfire 52 runs, the visitors posted a mammoth 206/6 in 20 overs. The Indian side gave away 59 runs in the last three overs.
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Chasing, India lost half their side by the 10th over and were 57/5. While Suryakumar Yadav and all-rounder Axar Patel stitched the highest partnership in T20Is for India for the sixth wicket and scored 91 runs together, but the asking rate got too high on India could only manage 190/8 in 20 overs.
Pacers over-step
While bowling, Hardik Pandya-led team conceded seven no-balls leading to seven free-hits for Sri Lanka. Pacer Arshdeep Singh bowled a nine-ball second over and conceded three consecutive no-balls which went for ten runs, giving away 19 runs in total. That was not all; Arshdeep bowled two no-balls in the 19th over too and conceded 18 runs in the eight-ball over. One no-ball each by pacers Shivam Mavi and Umran Malik just added to the problem.
Former India cricketer Gautam Gambhir, during the post-match discussion on Star Sports, put the reason for Arshdeep’s five no-balls to his long layoff. “Imagine seven balls, it’s like bowling more than 21 overs. Everyone bowls bad balls or plays bad shots but it’s about the rhythm. If you are coming after an injury, you should not be playing an international game,” said Gambhir.
‘Back to domestic cricket’
“You should be going to domestic cricket and getting your rhythm back because no-balls are not acceptable. Whoever is injured and there is a long layoff, he has to go back to domestic cricket, bowl 15-20 overs, come back and then play an international game, and that was squarely seen when Arshdeep Singh was struggling with his rhythm,” he added.
“You might be doing it in the nets, during the practice sessions, that’s the reason you do it in the match as well,” said Gambhir adding, “it’s up to the bowling coach to probably work on that.”
With the series now tied at 1-1, the third and final T20I between India and Sri Lanka will be played on Saturday, January 7, at Saurashtra Cricket Association Stadium, Rajkot.
