Former Indian batter Manoj Tiwary questioned India’s think tank tactics after the eight-wicket loss against New Zealand in the opening Test match at Bengaluru. Indian skipper Rohit Sharma misread the pitch and decided to bat first in favorable bowling conditions.

Furthermore, the team management got their selection wrong as they played Kuldeep Yadav ahead of seamer Akash Deep, who had performed well against Bangladesh. 

Manoj Tiwary said on Cricbuzz, “Sometimes I don’t understand the decisions. Common sense seems to be lacking. What the coach or captain is trying to prove, is beyond my understanding. I feel like, whenever there is a new coach or new captain, they try to prove something and take such decisions.”

Moreover, Tiwary questioned Rohit’s captaincy as he didn’t back veteran spinner Ravichandran Ashwin when India was defending 107 runs on the fifth day. Rohit gave a long spell to Mohammed Siraj but brought on Ashwin when only 10 runs were required for the win.

“I knew that one of the spinners would be under-bowled, but I never imagined that it would be Ashwin. He has over 500 Test wickets. When you are defending 107, why didn’t you bring him in the attack alongside Jasprit Bumrah? Good captains also make mistakes, because a lot of things go through your mind. Here, the role of the coach to give constant guidance is very important, but I don’t know why that did not happen,” Tiwary wondered.

Many things didn’t go according to plan for the Indian team in the opening Test and Rohit Sharma was open to take the blame on his shoulders. India will look to turn the tables in the second Test match at Pune and they are expected to play on a rank-turner.

India will take on New Zealand in the second Test at Pune from Thursday onwards.