NEW DELHI: Team India's decision to cancel their practice match in Australia did not go down well with the cricket legend Sunil Gavaskarwho described the move as “unbelievable.”
The team's original plan included a practice game against India A on WACA floor before their opening Test matchwhich begins on November 22nd at Perth Stadium.
“For the sake of Indian cricket (I hope) whoever heeded the call to scrap the warm-up match and then shorten the match between the first and second Tests against the Australian Prime Minister's XI to two days will be right,” Gavaskar said wrote in his column for Mid-Day.
Gavaskar explained that the batters needed the practice match in Australia, especially given their struggles at home against New Zealand.
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“To be fair, the Indians scored over 400 in the second innings (of the first Test) in Bangalore, but after that they looked completely at a loss in four innings against a spin attack that was by no means as dangerous as India. “I could Not scoring 150 in the fourth inning,” he said.
“That's why the cancellation of the team's warm-up game in Perth against the Indian 'A' team is unbelievable. There is no better feeling for a batsman when he spends time in the middle and feels the ball hitting the middle of the bat.” “No amount of net drill will ever replace the feeling of flow and bat speed that you get even after one has a short stay in the batting area.”
Gavaskar stressed the importance of playing in real practice matches rather than just facing bowlers in net sessions. He acknowledges that some might argue that senior bowlers might hold back in practice matches against top players to avoid injury, but points out that batters in the nets often face less prepared pitches and bowlers who sometimes don't throw balls without penalty.
“Yes, there is a possibility that the senior team's new ball bowlers may not go full throttle for fear of injuring a key batsman, but that is more likely to happen in the nets, where the pitches are usually not as well prepared as in .” A match in which the bowlers bowl without any consequences, knowing that they can be dismissed three or more times in the nets and still continue to bat and then play without any tension or pressure “It will be the same as being in one play the right game,” he said.
“It is also crucial for the bowlers to find the right rhythm on the run-up and to be sure that they don’t go too far. You can learn which line and length to bowl in a real game and not at the nets.”