Former Indian cricketer Kris Srikkanth didn't hold back in expressing his disappointment with the Indian Test side following their recent inning and 32-run defeat against South Africa at Centurion. Srikkanth criticized the team, deeming them overrated in Test cricket and shedding light on what he perceives as underperforming players, notably pointing out the overlooked talent of Kuldeep Yadav.
Speaking candidly on his YouTube channel, Srikkanth opined that while India excels in T20 and ODI formats, their Test cricket reputation is overinflated. He emphasized the unpredictable nature of knockout matches in ODIs and praised the team's prowess in the 50-over format. However, he pinpointed a decline in Test cricket performance since the golden era under Virat Kohli's captaincy, where India displayed dominance in England, resilience in South Africa, and triumph in Australia.
"Test cricket, we are over-rated. We have to make sure... 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 expressed.
Srikkanth urged the team to move beyond past achievements and forget about ICC rankings. He criticized a combination of overrated players and those not living up to their potential, using Kuldeep Yadav as an example of a quality player left on the sidelines.
"We have to forget ICC ranking. We are always 1-2, 1-2. It's a combination of having over-rated cricketers and people who have not performed up to their potential. Or some players have not had enough chances like Kuldeep (Yadav)," Srikkanth asserted.
Dismissing Rohit Sharma's claims of success away from home, Srikkanth considered them echoes from 18 months ago. He urged the team to introspect and evaluate their recent performances rather than relying on victories in Australia and England, emphasizing the need to be giants on home grounds for sustained success.
"If you want to be the best team, you should be capable of being the giants on home grounds. 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,” Srikkanth concluded.
(With Agency Inputs)
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