"Combination of over-rated cricketers and people who have not performed up to their potential" - Kris Srikkanth lambasts India's Test and T20I sides
Former Indian batter Kris Srikkanth blasted the Indian T20I and Test sides by stating the squad boasts of several over-rated and under-performing players. His statement came ahead of the second and final Test against South Africa in Cape Town, starting on January 3.
Vying to win their maiden Test series in South Africa, India's dreams ended thanks to their abject surrender in the first game, losing by an innings and 32 runs.
Speaking on his YouTube channel, Srikkanth dismissed the ICC rankings that often have India in the top two.
"We have to forget ICC ranking. We are always 1-2, 1-2. It's a combination of having over-rated cricketers and people who have not performed up to their potential. Or there are players who have not enough chances like Kuldeep (Yadav)," Srikkanth said.
Srikkanth also lashed out at India as an overrated Test side barring the period under Virat Kohli's captaincy.
"Test cricket, we are over-rated," Srikkanth stated. "We have to make sure... I think it was a phase of 2-3 years... when Virat Kohli was the captain of the team, we were outstanding. We dominated in England, we fought hard in South Africa, we won in Australia. We had a good phase for 2-4 years. Yes, we were dominating in England, in Australia."
Despite twin Test series wins in Australia in 2018/19 and 2020-21, Kris Srikkanth believes India cannot rest on their laurels and must demonstrate the ability to consistently away from home.
"If you want to be the best team, you should be capable of being the giants in their home grounds," Srikkanth continued. "That is what we did when Rishabh Pant was firing. But you can keep on talking that we scored in Australia, we scored in England. You can sing the same song, you won't move forward if you rest on past laurels. You have to just look at how you have performed in the last 2 years, last 18 months."
India drew the Test series 2-2 in England in 2021-22 but suffered a 0-2 whitewash in their previous tour of New Zealand in 2019-20.
Nevertheless, they finished in the top two of the 2021 and 2023 World Test Championship (WTC) cycles but suffered defeats to New Zealand and Australia in the finals.
"We are a gun side in ODI" - Kris Srikkanth on Team India
Despite calling the Indian T20I side overrated, Kris Srikkanth showered praise on the ODI unit. He feels it was only in one-off knockout matches in World Cups that have hurt the team.
The Men in Blue had a remarkable run at the 2023 ODI World Cup, winning all 10 games before losing to Australia in the finak. However, since winning the inaugural T20 World Cup in 2007, India has reached the final only once in the following seven editions.
"In T20 cricket India are highly over-rated," Srikkanth stated. "ODI cricket, we are a fantastic team. What happens in ODis, in the semi-finals, finals, it's just a one-off match. It's a luck factor, a lot depends on luck in these matches. I read Rohit Sharma's statement, for a cricketer, the 50-over World Cup is a huge achievement."
"We are sometimes underperforming in the knockout matches, in the semi-finals and the final. But we are a gun side in ODI. Regardless of where we play, be it India, Australia or South Africa, we are a gun side," he added.
Under the leadership of MS Dhoni, India won three ICC titles - T20 and ODI World Cups and the Champions Trophy between 2007 and 2013. However, they have been on a drought in ICC events across formats for over a decade now, often losing in the semi-final or final.