Former Indian cricketer Sunil Gavaskar has expressed worry over the development of young Indian cricketers under foreign coaches and emphasised the necessity of Indian coaches in the IPL.
The IPL 2023 league stage was completed on Sunday, May 21, with the top four teams advancing to the next round. The defending champions, Gujarat Titans, Chennai Super Kings, Lucknow Super Giants, and Mumbai Indians all made the playoffs.
Delhi Capitals (DC) and Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) finished ninth and tenth in the league stage, respectively. In the absence of Rishabh Pant, Australian batsman David Warner showed well with the bat but couldn’t lead the Capitals to the playoffs.
Meanwhile, Aiden Markram failed to live up to expectations following his victory with the Sunrisers Eastern Cape as the first SA20 winners.
Sunil Gavaskar blamed foreign leadership, notably head coaches Ricky Ponting and Brian Lara, for failing to connect with Indian interior players.
Gavaskar wrote in his Sportstar column on how foreign captains and coaches from DC and SRH couldn’t connect with the outstanding Indian youngsters:
“These players have had such superior skills and a magnificent temperament that it’s not easy for them to think like those not as gifted as they were in both the technique and temperament departments.”
He further mentioned the language barriers, adding:
“Often, the language is a barrier for a young, budding Indian player who comes from the interiors and may not be conversant in English to understand. That probably explains why players like Yash Dhull, Priyam Garg, and Sarfaraz Khan, to name just three, have made little or no progress.”
Sunil Gavaskar on Nitish Rana’s captaincy
Shreyas Iyer of the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) missed the full season due to a back ailment. In the absence of the Indian middle-order batter, Nitish Rana assumed command of the squad.
Despite having played for KKR since 2018, uncapped Indian youngster Rinku Singh was the discovery of IPL 2023.
Rinku smashed Yash Dayal for five consecutive sixes to complete a stunning chase against Gujarat Titans in the final over. Since then, the southpaw has been the KKR batting order’s lynchpin, scoring 474 runs at a strike rate of 149.53.
After a dismal season with the bat in IPL 2022 (182 runs in 12 innings), KKR floater Venkatesh Iyer made good development with 404 runs at a strike rate of 145.85.
Leg-spinner Varun Chakravarthy led the two-time IPL champions with 20 wickets at an economy rate of 8.15.
Sunil Gavaskar commented on head coach Chandrakant Pandit, the franchise’s first Indian coach since the league’s start, for the performances of Indian KKR players in IPL 2023.
Gavaskar stated:
“Look at the progress made by Rinku Singh under Chandu Pandit, the terrific coming back to form of Venkatesh Iyer and Varun Chakravarthy, and Nitish Rana growing as a captain.”
Sunil Gavaskar also lauded the players of LSG and Gujarat Titans for blossoming under Indian coaching. He went on to say:
“Under the guidance of Gautam Gambhir, see how Ravi Bishnoi, Ayush Badoni, and Naveen-ul-Haq (Afghanistan) are flowering, as also under Ashish Nehra and Hardik Pandya, who invariably find a new player of the match.”