Former Indian batter Rohan Gavaskar criticised Gujarat Titans’ batting approach after they suffered a 29-run loss against Kolkata Knight Riders at Eden Gardens, Kolkata on Saturday. Gavaskar said not even one GT batter had a strike rate of more than 200 in the run chase of 248.
GT’s consistent trio of Shubman Gill, Sai Sudharsan and Jos Buttler scored fifties but their strike was between 160-190. Gill top scored with 85 runs off 49 balls but he and Buttler could not match the required run rate in the middle phase.
Rohan Gavaskar said on Cricbuzz, “I can clearly see the difference. If you really want to understand the difference in batting, then forget everything else and look at the strike rates. For KKR, Ajinkya Rahane was the only batter whose strike rate was around 100. Every other batter had a strike rate above 180. For Gujarat Titans, only Sai Sudharsan had a strike rate above 180. The rest of the batters all had strike rates below 180.
“So when you are chasing 240, it shouldn’t happen that not even one batter has a strike rate above 200. You want one or two batters to play impactful cameos. Even if someone scores just 25 runs, that innings should come at a strike rate of 200, 225, or even 250. Here, Sai Sudharsan’s strike rate was around 190, but no other batter had a strike rate above 180,” he added.
On the other hand, former Indian fast bowler Mohit Sharma questioned GT’s tactics. Sharma said either Jason Holder or Rahul Tewatia could have been sent to bat ahead of Sai Sudharsan when the latter returned after getting hit on the elbow.
“But there were options. I would still say that the thought process behind sending Sai Sudharsan back out raises questions somewhere. But yes, they did have options. They could have sent Rahul Tewatia, and it was a perfect situation for him. After that, they also had Jason Holder, who could have come in and used his long hitting ability in that situation.
“But yes, this is how Gujarat Titans operate. GT tends to show more faith in the players who have been consistently delivering for them and are already settled in the setup. So, that’s their way of thinking. But for me, Sai Sudharsan coming back again and again keeps raising the same question,” he added.
GT will next take on CSK at the Narendra Modi Stadium, Ahmedabad, on Thursday.
