IND VS NZ | Lack of batting technique has hurt India's chances in New Zealand, attests Mohinder Amarnath

IND VS NZ | Lack of batting technique has hurt India's chances in New Zealand, attests Mohinder Amarnath

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According to Mohinder Amarnath, the technical aspect of batting was the reason for the failure of Indian batters in the Wellington Test. The former hoped for Virat Kohli to come good in the second Test after aggregating a mere 201 runs in nine innings across all formats with just one half century.

Virat Kohli’s bat has not done the talking since the start of India’s tour of New Zealand. The master batsman’s inability to judge the swing and seam has led to his downfall in both white and red ball. The former has aggregated a mere 201 runs in nine innings across all formats with just one half century. But one of India’s finest batsmen, Mohinder Amarnath has installed confidence among Virat Kohli’s fans saying the master would come good in the second Test against New Zealand starting Saturday in Christchurch.

“It is not that they have not played there. They have done well earlier but the difference here is that Virat has not performed. “If you see India’s performance overseas in the last two years, Virat has been the key. Sometimes luck doesn’t favour you. But I’m sure he’ll come good in the second Test. He’s a great player. He has the technique to shine in all conditions. All great players adjust themselves very quickly and Virat knows what he is supposed to . He won’t fail in too many things,” said Amarnath as quoted by Cricbuzz.

The former world cup winner has been dismantled by the exclusion of KL Rahul from the test squad. The Karnataka batsman who was a Test regular until 2018, lost his spot due to poor form and made way for his friend Mayank Agarwal. However, in September last year, he got a chance to open innings against the West Indies in the Caribbean. In his last Test outing, the right-handed batsman had scores of 13 and 6 which forced the team management to ask Rohit Sharma to open innings against South Africa at home and the Mumbaikar sealed the spot immediately.

But Rahul has been in sublime form at the moment across formats and he is one of the biggest positives for India in the limited-overs format in this year. The right-hander scored runs for fun during the T20I and ODI leg of the New Zealand series. The 69-year-old also suggested that Indian batsman should learn from the technique of Ajinkya Rahane, who he feels plays the ball late which is pivotal to succeed in Kiwi conditions.

“Rahul has done well. He's been the man in form. And you have to play the man in form. I am surprised he is not playing in Tests in this series. He would have been better than trying someone out. The technique of Indian batsmen is good on harder pitches. Or on Indian pitches where the ball is not doing much in the air or off the surface. In New Zealand, you have to play the way Ajinkya does. I really like the way he bats. You have to play very tight and with soft hands, especially when you are defending.”

In the wellington test, Indian batters lost their wickets by going hard at the ball in both the innings. New Zeland pacers created havoc and didn’t allow the Indian batters to cope up with the swing or seam. The former felt it was more about technical failure than anything else when asked about India’s successive batting failures. 

"The technical aspect of batting has been the reason for the failure in this Test. You have to adjust. You can’t play in your flamboyant style even if it is your natural game. You can cope with the bounce. It’s the seam movement and the swing where the technique comes into play. You have to be there all the time and concentrate hard. Not that they don’t do but the shortcomings show obviously. The bat is mostly away from the body. If the ball seams and swings in the second Test, too, the Indians will be on a tough test.” he added.

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