Sunil Gavaskar slams Indian top order after continued poor form during BGT 2024 series

Former Indian cricket captain Sunil Gavaskar has slammed India’s batting during the ongoing Australian tour. The 75-year-old wasn’t happy with the way India’s top order has performed so far. “The contributions that were expected have not come. It is the top order which has to contribute,” said Mr. Gavaskar to India Today. 

Sunil Gavaskar also said, “If the top order is not contributing, why blame the lower order. It’s just the top order didn’t contribute and India has found itself in this position”. Team India now has to win the final game of the series in Sydney. If India happens to win the game they will level the series and retain the BGT title. 

Not only that, India will also be in the running for the WTC finals if Australia lose to Sri Lanka by 1-0 or 2-0 margin. So far Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli have failed to deliver with the bat during the current series. Barring the one century by Kohli in Perth, the former India skipper has fallen to the 4th and 5th stump line in each innings. Rohit Sharma on the other had has scored just 31 runs from 5 innings on this tour. 

Sunil Gavaskar assesses problems with Virat Kohli’s form 

Former Indian skipper Virat Kohli has attracted lots of criticism for his constant failures outside off stump. The 36-yerar-old has constantly flashed at deliveries outside the 4th and 5th stump line. During his chat with India Today, Mr. Gavaskar recognized the reason behind the constant failure. 

The 75-year-old said, “The foot is not going to the pitch of the ball, the foot is going straight down the pitch, not towards the ball. If the foot goes more towards the ball, you have more chances of hitting the ball from the middle. Because the foot is not moving, you end up reaching for the ball, and that is what has been happening," 

Speaking about the future of the veteran duo, Mr. Gavaskar said, “The seniors have not really made the contribution that they should have, all that they had to do was bat out today and live to fight another day in Sydney,"