Former India captain Sunil Gavaskar, who is currently in Singapore for the 1983 World Cup-winning team’s felicitation, wants Indian cricket to stop its fascination with individuals and rather think about the collective team. Well, Gavaskar is not the first one to put forward this notion. It’s no secret that the current head coach of the men’s team, Gautam Gambhir, also hates the superstar culture and wants the entire Men in Blue lineup to be acknowledged rather than just one or two individuals.
Gavaskar’s comments came ahead of the first Test between India and Sri Lanka in Galle. India faces an uphill battle in order to reach the World Test Championship (WTC) final at the Oval next year. After the series loss against South Africa last year, India must win seven out of their remaining nine Tests to have any chance of reaching the summit clash.
The legendary batter believes that India can whitewash Sri Lanka in the two-Test series, and it all depends on whether the lineup has the needed belief. However, he then added that the belief should be to prioritise Indian cricket rather than some big “individuals.”
The two-match series in Sri Lanka won’t be easy, as Sri Lanka at home are a formidable team. Winning both these Tests would be a good start to the new Test season, as well as give the team the impetus it needs to qualify for the WTC Final,” Gavaskar wrote in his column for Sportstar.
“To be able to do so requires loads of effort and also some luck, but, above all, the belief that Indian cricket should be the priority and not any individual, however big a name he may be,” he added.
Ahead of the opening Test against Sri Lanka, the Indian team played a three-day practice game against SLC XI, winning by six wickets. Devdutt Padikkal was the headline act with his unbeaten century in the first innings.
‘Value of IPL’
Gavaskar also added the value of the Indian Premier League (IPL), saying the T20 tournament has displayed the need for well-organised competitions. He further stated that the IPL has helped cricket boards worldwide and that its growth is essential to the global sport.
“Today, the IPL has shown the world what a well-organised tournament can do. The fruits of that success have spurred Indian franchise owners to venture into other countries and lift those countries’ cricketing ecosystems to a higher level than might otherwise have been possible,” wrote Gavaskar.