Chennai, February 27 – While India's comfortable 72-run victory over Zimbabwe may have boosted morale, legendary opener Sunil Gavaskar cautioned that the defending champions cannot afford to underestimate the two-time champions, the West Indies. He emphasized that India needs to devise smart strategies to counter the Windies' batting threat in their crucial Super Eights match in Kolkata on Sunday.
"As the saying goes, 'If it ain't broke, don't fix it.' But India faltered against South Africa. They realized they needed a strong opening combination. Learning from the previous game was crucial. Now, the West Indies presents a completely different challenge. They cannot be taken lightly. Their batsmen are in top form, their bowlers are performing well, and they capitalize on opposition mistakes and strike at the right moments.
"India will need a well-defined plan to handle the West Indies' batting. Their batsmen start attacking from the first ball. They don't wait to assess the delivery. Their way of respecting the ball is to hit it over the boundary. Therefore, India needs to play intelligently, formulate strategies, and outsmart the West Indies in a way they don't expect. The match on Sunday is undoubtedly going to be a thrilling one," Gavaskar said on JioStar.
He also praised India's recovery after their 76-run defeat against South Africa in Ahmedabad, particularly the batting changes and the improved bowling display. "India bounced back strongly from the South Africa loss with a dominant win over Zimbabwe. The margin of that defeat against South Africa would have been disheartening, but they used it positively against Sikandar Raza's team and made a strong comeback.
"After the match against South Africa, there was debate about whether India should make changes in the playing XI, and they did, and both changes proved successful. Sanju Samson didn't get a fifty, but he gave India a flying start. Earlier, the openers had struggled, with Abhishek Sharma getting out for zero runs in three matches, while Ishan Kishan had also struggled against South Africa.
"Against Zimbabwe, Samson scored 24 runs quickly. He and Abhishek scored at over 10 runs per over in the powerplay, which was fantastic. The bowling also improved. Axar Patel kept things tight and took a wicket, which had been missing against South Africa. Scoring 256 with most batters getting time in the middle is great. It builds confidence. But India cannot take the West Indies lightly. The match on Sunday will determine whether they qualify for the semi-finals or have to wait for the 2028 T20 World Cup," he elaborated.
Gavaskar highlighted Sanju Samson's brisk cameo of 24 as the innings' defining moment, adding that it set the tone for India making a massive 256/4. "That six which Sanju Samson hit off the back foot straight over long off was amazing. It is not an easy shot to play off the back foot. You usually play towards mid-wicket or thereabouts. Then he hit another six over long on. Wonderful shots. It tells you the class of the man.
"In the interest of the team, he went for a big hit and got out. That is fine because he got India off to a flying start. In a tournament like the T20 World Cup, that is important. A flying start gives a nice platform for the other batsmen to come in and smash the ball around."
Gavaskar also lauded Abhishek Sharma's measured 55 as a sign of significant maturity from the young left-handed opener, who had struggled for runs in earlier matches, including getting three ducks.
"We know how good Abhishek Sharma is as a batter. He silenced his critics with this knock of 55 runs against Zimbabwe. He took that extra time to start his innings. There was a method to his batting. He respected the off-spinner, didn't take any kind of risks, and played in a calm and composed manner.
"In this game, he actually played a defensive shot. He defended the ball. I was surprised to see that because we don't usually see Abhishek do that. I really think this is a learning curve for him. Every cricketer goes through a rough patch of not scoring runs in back-to-back games.
"It is about how much you learn from it. I feel Abhishek has learned a lot, and this will be beneficial for him in the next couple of games and the crucial clash against West Indies in Kolkata," he concluded.
