Former India cricketer Krishnamachari Srikkanth unleashed a scathing critique on the Indian side, labelling them as overrated in Test cricket on the backdrop of India's recent innings and 32-run defeat in the first Test match against South Africa at Centurion.
Srikkanth minced no words, asserting that several players in the Indian Test team were overrated and had underperformed, and deserving talents like Kuldeep Yadav were being overlooked.
"In T20 cricket India are highly over-rated. ODI cricket, we are a fantastic team. What happens in ODis, in the semifinals, finals, it's just a one-off match. It's a luck factor, a lot depends on luck in these matches,” Srikkanth said on his YouTube channel.
“I read Rohit Sharma's statement, for a cricketer, the 50-over World Cup is a huge achievement. We sometimes underperform in the knockout matches, in the semifinals and the final. But we are a gun side in ODI. Regardless of where we play, be it India, Australia or South Africa, we are a gun side," he added.
He reminisced about the golden period of Test cricket under Virat Kohli's captaincy, where India exhibited dominance in England, resilience in South Africa, and triumph in Australia. However, the former cricketer contended that since then, the team has been coasting on the laurels of past achievements.
"In Test cricket, we are overrated. We have to make sure. I think it was a phase of 2-3 years, when Virat Kohli was the captain of the team, we were outstanding. We dominated in England, we fought hard in South Africa, we won in Australia. We had a good phase for 2-4 years. Yes, we were dominating in England, in Australia," Srikkanth said.
We Have To Forget ICC Rankings: Srikkanth
Srikkanth said it is time for India to forget about the ICC rankings. He also argued that the combination of overrated players and those not living up to their potential had hindered India's progress. Kuldeep Yadav, according to Srikkanth, was a prime example of a quality player left on the sidelines.
"We have to forget ICC rankings. We are always 1-2, 1-2. It's a combination of having overrated cricketers and people who have not performed up to their potential. Or some players have not enough chances like Kuldeep (Yadav)," Srikkanth said.
Srikkanth Explains Importance of Beating ‘Giants’
India's captain, Rohit Sharma, had previously mentioned the team's success away from home, but Srikkanth dismissed such claims as mere echoes from 18 months ago. The former cricketer urged the team to move beyond past glories and focus on recent performances.
Srikkanth reminded fans that dwelling on victories in Australia and England wouldn't suffice, urging the team to introspect and evaluate their performance over the last 2 years.
"If you want to be the best team, you should be capable of being the giants on home grounds. That is what we did when Rishabh Pant was firing. But you can keep on saying that we scored in Australia, we scored in England. You can sing the same song; you won't move forward if you rest on past laurels. You have to just look at how you have performed in the last two years, last 18 months,” he concluded.
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