"Where's the batting coach?" - Aakash Chopra calls for a relook at Vikram Rathour amid India's declining performance with the bat
Aakash Chopra has called for a relook at Team India batting coach Vikram Rathour's contributions amid a stark decline in the team's performances with the willow.
Chopra remarked that as people have taken credit for the improvement in the bowling department, the "buck has to stop somewhere" for the dipped averages of Virat Kohli, Ajinkya Rahane, and Cheteshwar Pujara in the last couple of years.
He said India needs to see if there have been any shortcomings in Rathour's work and how he has addressed them.
In a video on his Youtube channel, Chopra said:
"Everyone has taken credit for India's bowling improvement. Some people gave credit to Virat Kohli, some to Bharat Arun, some to Ravi Shastri. Everyone said, 'Indian bowling has improved a lot'. But who is responsible for the batting decline? ... If you are taking credit then responsibility needs to be taken as well. The decline is palpable. Cheteshwar Pujara, Ajinkya Rahane and Virat Kohli's numbers have dipped in the last 2-2.5 years so where's the batting coach?"
The former India batter added:
"The batting coach has the responsibility and the buck has to stop somewhere. Vikram Rathour, who is with the team for quite some time, you need to look at him again whether he's doing his job well and if not then what are the shortcomings and how is he addressing them."
Rahthour was appointed batting coach in late 2019. And while Shastri, Arun and fielding coach R Sridhar left last year, he got an extension. However, India's well-documented overseas success, which began at the same time as his arrival, has been mostly attributed to the fitter and more incisive bowling group.
India Batting Coach, Vikram Rathour says they will always give one more opportunity than they think to someone deserves 🙌
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Their consistency papered over the batting cracks, especially in the middle order. But it all came to a head in the recent series in South Africa, where the bowlers failed to bail out the struggling batting lineup in the last two Tests.
"The coach is suddenly like a football manager" - Aakash Chopra on India's transition phase
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Speaking on the second major issue with Indian cricket - Kohli's sudden stepping down from the Test captaincy - Chopra said Rahul Dravid's job has got tougher.
He feels that in this phase, Dravid's role in designing India's future path will be more important than the new captain, almost like a football club manager.
Chopra explained:
"It's difficult for the coach because he's a new coach. If he had been there for a long time then he would have a blueprint ready for the new captain. Now there's a new captain, a new coach and they have to travel a new path... In cricket, the captain is the most important and the coach is just below him. But in such situations, the coach goes up and the captain comes a bit behind him because there's a guarantee of the coach's continuity. The coach is suddenly like a football manager with an enhanced role."
Chopra also lamented India's failure to build a leadership group to succeed Kohli. He said there had been a "slight mismanagement" with regards to the trust shown in Rahane as a captaincy prospect despite his poor form. Chopra added:
"We've failed to create a leadership group, honestly speaking. If Ajju had been in good form it would have been a natural succession. That was certainly a plan but his performances were on a downswing in the last two years and we were not ready to look at anywhere else because we believed that Kohli is going to continue for a long time. That didn't happen and there's been a slight mismanagement."
India and South Africa will now clash in a three-match ODI series beginning at 2:00 pm IST on Wednesday in Paarl.