Indian batsmen habituated to using angled bats led to downfall, says Vengsarkar

India's losses to England at Southampton and Old Trafford have undone most if not all of the good work that the win at Lords gave to Indian cricket.

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Indian batsmen habituated to using angled bats led to downfall, says Vengsarkar
Dilip Vengsarkar

Former chairman of selectors Dilip Vengsarkar calls the second innings batting collapse at Old Trafford the worst he has seen from India. He tried to put his selectors hat on and fell short of finding replacements for the batsmen or the captain. Speaking to IndiaToday.in, Vengsarkar said that coach Duncan Fletcher must sort technical shortcomings of Indian batsmen. Excerpts from an interview:

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How alarming are India's back to back losses to England in the third and fourth tests? India was folded out twice at Old Trafford in less than 90 overs.

It was shocking to me. It was a very embarrassing defeat. There are millions of followers of Indian cricket, especially in England, and they were devastated. Old Trafford was very poor. I didn't think we would lose a test in three days. The way India batted in the second innings was the worst I have seen from an Indian team.

We knew that the Indian bowling could fall short. But what in your opinion explains the batting disasters?

I think all the frontline batsmen are struggling with technical flaws. Except Vijay who is batting well, all others have got issues. And these flaws become very glaring in test match cricket?. Brought up on ODI's and T20 format, when the ball moves around with good carry with four slips and a gully, you need a good defense which they lack. They are all playing with an angled bat. And that's not the way to play when you are trying to defend. That's what you do when you are trying to play through the off side. I don't know what all the coaches there are doing including Duncan Fletcher. Or it seems he hasn't found anything wrong in the batting of the Indian team.

Every time a question is asked about Duncan Fletcher, we are told he is good technically. It doesn't seem to be helping?

It's amazing how badly Indian team has done since Fletcher has taken over but he continues. Perhaps you should ask that question to the BCCI.

Virat Kohli got out 6 times out of 8 behind the wickets. How concerning is that? An indication that he needs to go back to the drawing board?

Virat is getting out the same way. I am surprised he is not rectified that mistake. He's repeating the same mistake over and over again and it's due to a slight flaw in technique which is unfortunate. He's a top class player and needs to sort the issue out himself.

Virat and Pujara failing collectively. Is that what's primarily letting Indian batting down?

I had expected a lot from Pujara. He's got a good defence but even he has been playing with an angled bat. But the adjustment has to made in English conditions where the ball will swing around with bounce.

Gambhir replaced Dhawan at the top of the order in the last test. He like everyone else failed. But is he a long term solution?

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Gambhir is not a long term solution. Dhawan needs to be continued even though I know England is a different cup of tea than batting in India. I think he is a better bet at the top of the order than Gambhir.

India go to Australia later in the year. If India doesn't comeback in the last test, putting your selector's hat on, what changes would you make?

The unfortunate part is we don't have any options. India A had gone to Australia recently and the average age was 29 which I think is quite high. I think it should be 23. That's the age group which can be groomed. We have a Rayudu, a Kedar Jhadav who did well but would you want to take them? That's a big question that selectors will have to answer.

Is India hurting enough after these test losses you think?

Test cricket is of primary importance. And they need to realise, only if you excel in tests will you be respected. You have to be at number 1, 2 in tests which we once were but are now struggling.

Another question that invariably arises. What about the captain Dhoni. Does he need to lead differently or should he go?

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Fact of the matter is we don't have anybody who is ready to take up captainship. It's a fact that Dhoni has lost most of the matches abroad and his performance as captain away is poor. But who would be his replacement? Your vice captain is himself struggling for runs and you can't burden him with captainship at this stage. He is himself not sure of his place in the team at the moment

Do you see India coming back in the final test match?

Look it's difficult to say if India will be able to comeback in the final test. But Oval is a good wicket to bat on and if we get a good start we will be able to do much better than this.