After India’s series win against South Africa in the ODI series, Indian Head Coach Gautam Gambhir said that he thinks batting orders are overrated in the ODI format. “I think in a one-day format, you should know the template that you want to play with. I’ve always believed that in white-ball cricket, batting orders are very overrated, except the opening combination,” said Gambhir
Reacting to his comments, former South African cricketer Ab de Villiers on his YouTube channel said: “I do agree with him to a certain extent. I’ve always enjoyed a floating batting lineup in ODIs. But it’s a fine line because you can’t really play around too much with the players’ roles. It’s the top three, four to six, and then your tailenders who can hold the bat. It’s almost like three segments, and you can really be creative with that. Play with right and left-hand combinations and certain situations of the game.”
Opening conundrum
Samson and Abhishek Sharma had formed an incredibly potent opening combination for India in the immediate months after the 2024 T20 World Cup. However, the return of Shubman Gill to the squad has resulted in Samson being displaced from the opening slot and having to often adjust anywhere in the top order to the lower middle order, if he is picked. India captain Suryakumar Yadav acknowledged that Samson did extremely well at the top of the order but Gill was always first choice.
“In terms of Sanju, yes, when he came into the circuit, he batted higher up the order. Now, the thing is, other than the openers, I feel everyone has to be very flexible,” Suryakumar told reporters on the eve of India’s first T20I against South Africa.
He reiterated the point made a number of times by head coach Gautam Gambhir about every batsman needing to be prepared to play anywhere, aside from the openers. “He (Sanju) did really well before when he played, when he opened the innings. But Shubman had played before him in the Sri Lanka series. So, he deserved to take that spot. But we gave Sanju opportunities. He was ready to bat at any number from 3 to 6. That is one thing which I have told all the batters — other than openers, everyone has to be very flexible.”
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