Tag: VVS Laxman

India vs England: Some decisions were just baffling, says VVS Laxman | Cricket News – Times of India

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NEW DELHI: Jos Buttler hit a magnificent 83 as England defeated India by eight wickets in the third Twenty20 International (T20I) to take a 2-1 lead in the five-match series. Former India cricketer VVS Laxman said some of India’s decision-making were baffling. India had brought in Rohit Sharma in place of Suryakumar Yadav who made his debut in the second T20I.
“I also found some of India’s decision-making baffling. I am sure the team management has its reasons, but what can possibly be the logic behind pushing Ishan Kishan, who made a half-century on debut as opener, down to No. 3? Or leaving out Suryakumar Yadav, who didn’t even get to bat in his only appearance? Kohli put on a masterclass in the art of innings-building. He was only 24 off 25 balls but switched gears effortlessly to finish with 77 off 46,” VVS Laxman wrote in column for The Times of India.
Put in to bat, India skipper Virat Kohli‘s 77-run blitz propelled India to 156-6 at the Narendra Modi stadium in Ahmedabad. In reply, Jos Buttler made an unbeaten 83 to guide England to 158 for two with 10 balls to spare. Apart from Buttler, Bairstow made an unbeaten 40 off 28 balls.
“Tuesday’s third T20I was an action replay of the first game, where India lost three wickets – and the match – in the power play overs. Statistics reveal that teams win, at best, one in four games when more than two wickets fall in the first six,” Laxman said.
“Virat Kohli tried to resuscitate the floundering effort with an exceptional knock, but despite his best efforts, not even he could undo the damage caused upfront. The red-soil surface was England’s great ally after Eoin Morgan won the toss, which has become a significant factor in this series,” he said.
“India needed early wickets, which is perhaps why Yuzvendra Chahal bowled in the power play, but Jos Buttler had an answer to every question. India will need to revisit their combination, and factor in another bowling option to account for any eventuality. Stacking the line-up with batsmen can be counter-productive, as evidenced twice in the last three matches,” the former cricketer said.
The fourth match of the series will be played on Thursday in Ahmedabad.

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India vs England: Shikhar Dhawan sweats it out in training ahead of first T20I | Cricket News – Times of India

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AHMEDABAD: India opener Shikhar Dhawan has kept no stone unturned to prepare for the upcoming five-match T20I series against India.
With questions being raised as to who will open with star batsman Rohit Sharma in the T20I series, Dhawan is ensuring he ticks all the boxes going into the first game on Friday.
Dhawan on Wednesday shared glimpses of how his training for the shortest format has fared. In the pictures, the left-handed batsman is not only seen smashing his signature sweep shot, but also honing his fielding skills.
“All in a training day’s work,” Dhawan tweeted.

Meanwhile, former India batsman VVS Laxman has picked Rohit and KL Rahul as the opening pair for the upcoming T20I series.
According to the former batsman, Dhawan — despite being in great touch — can be used as a backup opener keeping in mind this year’s T20 World Cup in India.
Speaking on Star Sports show Cricket Connected, Laxman said, “It will be a tough question, as far as the selection of the second opener is concerned. There’s no doubt about that because Rohit Sharma is an automatic choice in white-ball cricket. I will still go with KL Rahul because over the last few months and years I think the Indian team management went with KL Rahul as an opening batsman and he has done really well in that position.
“Yes, Shikhar Dhawan had a fantastic IPL, the way he batted at the top of the order, scoring centuries for Delhi Capitals and then he’s in tremendous form for Delhi in the Vijay Hazare, where he scored a big 100 in that tournament as well. With KL Rahul as an opening combination, you want someone who’s second. Keeping in mind the T20 World Cup, you have to identify who your openers are going to be there in the World Cup and back them; don’t chop and change. You have someone as experienced as Shikhar Dhawan, who can be the backup opener in case one of these openers Rohit Sharma/KL Rahul gets injured or loses their form,” he added.



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Suryakumar Yadav is a perfect role model for youngsters: VVS Laxman | Cricket News – Times of India

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MUMBAI: “He’s a perfect role model for youngsters,” said former India batsman VVS Laxman while praising Suryakumar Yadav, who has earned his maiden call-up into the Indian team.
The right-handed batsman has been picked in the T20 squad for the upcoming five-match series against England, beginning this Friday.
While praising Suryakumar, Laxman said that the 31-year-old is a perfect example of how success is not too far away if one stays patient.
“He deserves it, I think he is a great role model for youngsters, especially in India; because they lose patience very quickly – because all positive run-getters in first-class cricket expect to get into the Indian team – but it is difficult. There is so much quality, so much talent, and so much competition, but what did Suryakumar do? – he goes back to first-class cricket, scores runs for Mumbai, whenever he gets an opportunity for Mumbai Indians – he is a positive run-getter,” said Laxman on Star Sports’ show ‘Game Plan’.
“He plays in tough situations and wins the match and that’s what you expect from a player. Ultimately there is a saying which my coach taught me early on, ‘If the selectors are not opening the door, break open the door!’, the only way you can do that is by your performance – we’re not sure if he will get to play in the playing XI but he definitely deserves a spot in the squad of that T20 Indian team,” he added.
Suryakumar has been a consistent performer in the domestic circuit and he has stellar IPL seasons for Mumbai Indians over the last two years. There were a lot of questions asked when he was not picked for the white-ball leg against Australia, but the selectors have now picked him for the England T20I series.
Suryakumar Yadav earned his maiden call-up into the Indian squad along with the likes of Ishan Kishan and Rahul Tewatia.

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India vs England: Rohit Sharma finally gets ‘consistent’ run after seven years | Cricket News – Times of India

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AHMEDABAD: Rohit Sharma has been considered one of the stalwarts of Indian batting for over a decade, but quite surprisingly this is only the second time in his 13-year international career that he has played six Tests in a row that India have played.
The first time this happened for Sharma was in late 2013 and early 2014 when he had made his Test debut after playing limited-overs cricket for six years.
Sharma played two Tests against West Indies in India, then flew to South Africa for two Tests and then went to New Zealand for two Test matches in 2013-14. After that, however, the batsman had been in and out of the Test side due to inconsistent performances.

Sharma’s first two Tests in 2013 produced centuries and set him on track to achieving greater heights, i.e. one who was ready to replace one of the Indian batting greats — Sachin Tendulkar, VVS Laxman, Rahul Dravid, and Sourav Ganguly — who had dominated the previous two decades.
However, things didn’t go the right way for Sharma and his next Test century came four years and 19 Test matches later in 2017 as he was in and out of the Test side.
Even that 2017 ton didn’t help Sharma cement his place in the Test side until the 2019 home Tests against South Africa saw him racking up big scores in a new role. He made 176 and 127 in Visakhapatnam and 212 in Ranchi against South Africa in three Tests.
Immediately after that, Sharma played a couple of Tests against Bangladesh and was almost looking like he would get to play six Test matches in a row when injury ruled him out of the New Zealand tour.
Sharma also couldn’t play the first two Tests in Australia in December but returned for the last two Tests and has now played in all four matches against England at home. The series has re-established him as India’s top batsman as he has handled tricky surfaces very well in the second and third Tests and helped India win.
As of now, Sharma is India’s leading run-scorer in the ongoing series with 304 runs and he could overtake Joe Root (338) on Friday as the leading scorer in the series for both teams.
“Rohit got runs because his shot selection was good. He played sweep shots, he played cover drive, he lifted the ball, played square cuts,” former India batsman and chief selector Anshuman Gaekwad told IANS.

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