T20 World Cup 2021: "Selection was right, execution was the main issue" - Harbhajan Singh
Former India spinner Harbhajan Singh backed India's ploy to rope in Shardul Thakur in place of Bhuvneshwar Kumar. The all-rounder did not have an eventful outing during the 8-wicket loss to New Zealand after being dismissed for a duck and bowling a solitary over in the second innings.
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Harbhajan noted that it was harsh to criticize Thakur for his batting performance since none of the other players scored runs. As far as his bowling was concerned, Harbhajan felt bowling a single over while defending 111 runs is not enough to judge a player. While speaking on his YouTube channel, Harbhajan said:
"Selection was right, I thought that it was absolutely right. You cannot judge him with just one over and at the same time cannot expect him to pick up like 4 wickets while defending 111. He did not score many runs, but neither did the other batsmen. Execution was the main issue."
Harbhajan also spoke about the impact of dot balls in the first innings as it constantly built pressure. It forced the Indian batsmen to take drastic measures to keep the scoreboard ticking. He added:
"There were 54 dot balls in the innings, that's 9 full overs. Spinners bowled very well despite the fact that there was no turn. They stuck with their line and lengths and Indian batsmen could not even pick singles off them."
Barring Adam Milne, all of the New Zealand bowlers had an ecomony of under 7. The spinners frustrated the Indian batsmen with their immaculate line and length and went for only 4 runs an over in their entire spell.
India were left far too behind after the loss of 2 wickets: Harbhajan
India lost both of their openers inside the powerplay itself and Harbhajan believes the team never really recovered from there. He felt Kohli's dismissal was a key factor and a turning point in the innings. The Indian skipper struggled throughout his stay at the crease, which yielded 9 runs off 17 deliveries. Harbhajan added:
"Pressure kept builidng up and even Kohli had to play the shot he does not play most often. That was a big wicket. Had Kohli remained on the crease and picked up more singles, India could have scored around 140-150. India were left far too behind after the loss of 2 wickets. Even though the target was low, there was no intent by the Indian bowlers. Body language and the fight was missing."
India's remaining matches constitute the likes of Afghanistan, Namibia and Scotland. The Men In Blue are in a delicate place at the moment with fate not in their hands anymore.
View the T20 World Cup 2021 prediction here.