“We have to stay positive”: Sitanshu Kotak on India’s batting struggle in T20 WC

Team India suffered a humiliating 76-run loss in the Super Eight phase opener, which has put the defending champions in a tricky phase.The Men in Blue will need to win their remaining matches to keep themselves alive in their title defence and also hope that South Africa ends the Super Eight phase unbeaten.

India’s batters have struggled to make an impact in the ongoing tournament so far, averaging just 20, the lowest among the teams that qualified for the Super 8s. The team has also recorded 11 ducks, highlighting the difficulties faced by the batting unit in converting starts into substantial scores.Asked about the reasons behind the poor form and how the team plans to address it ahead of the crucial clash against Zimbabwe, Kotak, during the pre-match conference, said, “See all the bilaterals and all, batting was really clicking well. I think in this World Cup also, the last game was a little concerning because, in like a year and a half roughly, a couple of times only we got less than 150. So I am not really looking at how many times somebody failed or how, because then we start putting pressure on the way they bat. But last game also I think we should take it in a stride that it was the worst game we played in two years, so we should just honestly I feel we should just don’t think about it too much and move ahead. World Cup, especially our openers, have not clicked as well as we want.”

Kotak emphasised that while the team’s recent performances have been below expectations, placing excessive focus on individual failures could add unnecessary pressure. He stressed the importance of preparation and strategic planning, analysing opposition bowling strategies to ensure the team can adapt and respond effectively in the remaining matches.”Ishan obviously played brilliantly against Pakistan, but Abhishek had a little rough patch, two or three games. It is fine. I personally would not stress too much about it. I would rather look ahead. Obviously, we are preparing, we are talking, and we are planning what oppositions are trying to bowl at them. They will bowl off-spinner, the pacers are bowling outside the off-stump. All that, obviously, you would also know that. So, not really so concerned about anything to be very honest,” the Indian batting coach added.

Sitanshu Kotak also dismissed concerns over pitch conditions as a reason for the team’s inconsistent batting in the T20 World Cup .”First thing, I don’t think we struggle on black soil. Slower pitches in T20, it becomes very slow, so that anybody struggles, but I don’t even think wickets have been that slow. So that is one thing. Here also, wicket high scoring, it looks right. Sometimes, if you lose three wickets in one over or if you get a low score, that time I don’t think we should be even blaming wickets. That’s wrong now, because I think we have to just try and stay positive, play better cricket, and I think apart from the last game, we have done reasonably well. There is not so much concern before that,” Kotak said.