Ahmedabad, February 23 India's decision to bench vice-captain Axar Patel in a crucial Super Eight match against South Africa inevitably sparked discussions about team dynamics and messaging, but assistant coach Ryan Ten Doeschate and batting coach Sitanshu Kotak insisted that the decision was purely based on tactical considerations.
India lost to South Africa by 76 runs, and Washington Sundar's poor performance with both bat and ball, along with being dropped in favor of Axar, has raised questions about whether only one person in the team management is making all the decisions, including those that might be controversial.
"Yes, we spent a lot of time deliberating about the eleven over the last couple of days. We were primarily focused on match-ups in the middle. Looking back, it seems like the right decision (to play Axar), but at the time, we felt that Rinku was needed as an eighth batter. The decision was based on that," Ten Doeschate replied to a question from