'Any coach should know team's strengths': Former pacer slams Team India management for defeat in 1st Test against South Africa

Former India fast bowler Balwinder Singh Sandhu has questioned the current batting group’s preparation standards following India’s 30-run defeat to South Africa in the Kolkata Test. The 69-year-old said the fourth-innings collapse, while chasing 124, highlighted issues that go beyond the pitch.

He argued that the batters struggled to trust their defence under pressure. “Losing to South Africa’s two spinners while chasing only 120 on the third day is beyond shocking. To me, the moment batsmen see close-in fielders, the pressure gets to them. They’re not used to that intensity anymore because T20 cricket doesn’t challenge your defence the same way,” Sandhu wrote in his Mid-day column.


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He linked the problem to limited exposure to domestic cricket, suggesting it has affected players’ ability to handle tougher conditions. As an example, he recalled Sachin Tendulkar’s preparation for the 1990 England tour. “Before the 1990 England tour, Sachin Tendulkar called me to the RCF ground because the pitch had grass and bounce. I brought seven or eight pacers. He batted for two hours every single day. That’s hunger. That’s preparation,” he said.

Sandhu questioned why similar commitment is not visible today. “Why can’t today’s players show even half that attitude?” he asked.

India had taken a 30-run lead in the first innings after bowling South Africa out for 159, but a gritty 55 from Temba Bavuma pushed the visitors’ second-innings total to what proved to be a defendable margin.

No batter from either side crossed fifty apart from the Proteas captain.

Sandhu also criticised Team India management, saying the same errors keep resurfacing.

“Are we not learning from past mistakes? New Zealand thrashed us in our own backyard not long ago. Yet we repeat the same errors. It clearly shows a poor understanding of our current players’ abilities,” he wrote.

He said the responsibility lies with the coaching staff. “For a head coach and batting coach, that’s unacceptable. Being a coach myself, I feel any coach, who has been around for years, should know his team’s strengths, weaknesses, and mindset inside out,” Sandhu added.

He questioned the flawed manner in which the side has looked at the question of succession.

“We still don’t know who is ready to step into the shoes of Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli, who, I feel, were moved out too quickly. Youngsters should be groomed around seniors, not at the cost of them,” he wrote.

India now wait on Shubman Gill’s fitness ahead of the second Test in Guwahati after the captain picked up a neck spasm in Kolkata.


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