Former Indian captain Sourav Ganguly has said that the T20I team losing four matches in a row is a temporary dip in form for a side that has been strong in white-ball cricket, adding that the team would bounce back riding on the quality players in the setup.
India slumped to a crushing 125-run loss to England at Trent Bridge, their heaviest defeat by runs in T20Is, after being bowled out for just 76 while chasing 202. The loss to England left India trailing 0-2 in the five-match series.
Shreyas Iyer, who was appointed skipper ahead of the UK tour in place of T20 World Cup-winning captain Suryakumar Yadav, is still searching for his first win as India’s T20I skipper after the team endured a 0-2 series loss to Ireland before slipping to a similar
deficit against England.
“I am a bit surprised by India’s performances. They have been such a strong white-ball side and this appears to be a temporary dip in form. They haven’t looked at their best, but India have plenty of quality players and I am sure they will bounce back,” Ganguly said while speaking to the media in Kolkata.
“Their only option now is to level the series. Every good team goes through difficult phases and finds a way to recover,” Ganguly added.
The biggest selection surprise came when the Indian team management, led by Gautam Gambhir, dropped Sanju Samson for the second T20I to make room for teenage sensation Vaibhav Sooryavanshi at the top of the order.
“That is a call for the team management (to make). It wouldn’t be appropriate for me to comment on it,” Ganguly said.
Sooryavanshi has neither fared better nor worse than the rest of the batting unit till now. With India trailing 0-2 in the series, Gambhir has kept the door open for Samson to return to the playing XI.
