"We know where the problem lies" - Aakash Chopra on India's overseas batting issues in the last 5 years
Aakash Chopra believes the Indian batting needs to be blamed for their slightly underwhelming performances in Test matches outside Asia.
Australia handed India a 209-run drubbing in the World Test Championship (WTC) final at The Oval in London on Sunday, June 11. Rohit Sharma and Co. disappointed in both the batting and bowling departments, conceding above-par totals with the ball and posting below-par scores with the bat.
While reflecting on India's loss in a video shared on his YouTube channel, Chopra pointed out that batting has proved to be India's Achilles heel:
"We know where the problem lies. Problem is not the bowling. If you see this match, there will be a slight recency bias. You will say that you conceded 470 runs and how are you saying that it is not the bowlers but the batters' mistake, what can the batting do? The batting will score 400 runs and bat first after winning the toss."
The former Indian opener acknowledged that India have had a decent Test record outside Asia in the last few years:
"I will just tell you a stat and try to think about it slightly objectively. India have played 27 Tests outside Asia in the last five years of which India have won 10, lost 14, and three have been drawn. Winning 10 out of 27 is not a bad result because earlier we didn't use to win."
However, Chopra highlighted that the Indian batters have rarely posted a substantial total on the board:
"How many times have the Indian batters scored more than 400 runs? If we talk about 27 matches, we have batted close to 50 times, and in that, we have posted a 400-plus total only five times."
Chopra added that the call to bowl first in the WTC final would have also been a collective decision of the batters. He reasoned that barring Ravindra Jadeja and Mohammad Shami, the rest of the senior players are all batters.
"The conditions cannot be that bad" - Aakash Chopra on Indian batters' poor average outside Asia
Aakash Chopra pointed out that the conditions cannot be as bad as the Indian batters' averages suggest:
"Our bowlers have dismissed the opposing team 22 times for less than 250 in these 27 games. As a bowling unit, our average is 28. If you feel the conditions are not batting-friendly and 400 is very difficult, the Indian batters' average in these 27 matches outside Asia is 26. The conditions cannot be that bad."
The cricketer-turned-commentator concluded by stating that the numbers are not flattering, considering it's a big sample size and that the lower-order batters have also made decent contributions at times. He added that the bowling department has been doing its job more often than not and was even missing Jasprit Bumrah in the WTC final.