Following India’s ODI series loss in Bangladesh, former coach Madan Lal attacked the team on Thursday, claiming they lacked “intensity and emotion” and were going in the wrong path. Following a one-wicket loss in the first ODI, India lost by five runs to Bangladesh in the second ODI on Wednesday at Mirpur, ending the series 0-2 for India. “Definitely the Indian team is not going in the right direction. I have not seen the intensity in the team of late. I have not seen ‘Josh’ in them in the last couple of years,” Lal told PTI in an interview.
“They are not looking like an Indian team at all. That passion of playing for the country is missing. Either their bodies are too tired or they are just going through the motions. And this is a serious concern.” In the second ODI, Deepak Chahar, who has struggled with ailments this year, was unable to finish his allotted number of overs. Star pacer Jasprit Bumrah and all-arounder Ravindra Jadeja are also out from the team due to injuries, adding to the Indian players’ fitness problems. Rohit Sharma, the captain, highlighted the issue of player fitness on Wednesday, saying that India “cannot have guys coming in to play for the country half-fit.”
Referring to Rohit’s observation, Lal, who is a member of the 1983 World Cup winning team, said: “It is a very sad thing. If the captain is saying this then something is wrong somewhere.” “Who is responsible for this? Are trainers responsible for this? Why are unfit players going? You are playing international cricket and the result is in front of you. “If they want to take rest they can take rest during IPL matches. Your country comes first. If you are not going to win ICC trophies, your nation’s cricket is going to go down.” After losing to the eventual tournament winner, England, in the semifinals, India was eliminated. After losing to Pakistan and Sri Lanka in the super 4, Rohit Sharma and company also left the Asia Cup early.
Lal attributed India’s recent lacklustre performance to the top-order batters. “If you see the record, how many centuries they (seniors) have scored in the last three years? And how many in the last one year? With age factor, your hand-eye coordination slows down. “But they are experienced players and they should have performed. If your top order does not perform you are not going to win.”
The former all-rounder, 71, criticised the bowlers for their lack of vigour. “Your bowling unit has become very weak suddenly. It looks like they are not going to get any wickets. After 69 for 6, Bangladesh managed to score 271. So what is all this going on?” Asked if there was a need to have different players for different formats, Lal said: “Every country is playing like that. Must have specialised cricketers for different formats. Why not have different players for different formats? All countries are doing it and India should also do the same.”