IND vs SA 2025: 'Support staff seem more interested in keeping their positions safe' - World Cup winner to BCCI after 1st Test

The Indian team has faced severe criticism after losing the first Test against South Africa at the Eden Gardens by 30 runs. On a turning track, the Indian batting came a cropper. They failed to chase down a 124-run target in the fourth innings on Day 3.

India's 1983 World Cup winner, Balwinder Singh Sandhu, questioned India's strategy and also lambasted the support staff, "who seem more interested in keeping their positions safe than actually contributing."

"India's overall strategy was weak. On a pitch like that, one end needs to be tied down by a defensive bowler, and the other must attack in short, sharp bursts - Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj, Kuldeep Yadav, Jadeja. That's how you build pressure. About our support staff - well, Morne Morkel can't teach Indian spinners anything new. And the less said about the batting coach, the better. The BCCI must take responsibility for appointing support staff who seem more interested in keeping their positions safe than actually contributing," Balwinder Singh Sandhu wrote in his column for Mid-Day.

Sandhu also seconded former India captain Sourav Ganguly's opinion of handing Mohammed Shami a comeback in the national team. He noted that the Bengal seamer has proven his fitness in domestic cricket, having picked up 20 wickets in four matches in the ongoing Ranji Trophy.

"To Gautam Gambhir's credit, he accepted responsibility for the turner instead of blaming the pitch - politically correct, maybe not fully accurate. CAB President Sourav Ganguly acted quickly to shield the pitch from criticism and also highlighted Mohammed Shami's case. And I fully agree. Shami deserves a proper farewell, and he has proved his fitness through domestic cricket," he added.

We still don't know who is ready to step into the shoes of Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli: Sandhu

From his personal experience in coaching, Sandhu said that a coach should know his team's strengths and weaknesses like the back of his hand. However, he feels that the current Indian support staff are not aware of their players' abilities. He also mentioned that Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli were removed from the team too quickly.

"New Zealand thrashed us in our own backyard not long ago. Yet we repeat the same errors. It clearly shows a poor understanding of our current players' abilities. For a head coach and batting coach, that's unacceptable. Being a coach myself, I feel any coach who has been around for years should know his team's strengths, weaknesses, and mindset inside out. We still don't know who is ready to step into the shoes of Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli, who, I feel, were moved out too quickly. Youngsters should be groomed around seniors, not at the cost of them," Sandhu wrote further.

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The cricketer-turned-expert also said that playing four spinners in the first Test was the biggest blunder. He went on to criticise the batters for their lack of game understanding.

"Then came the biggest blunder - playing four spinners when the opposition had only two. It showed complete confusion about who the main attacking spinner actually was. And ironically, pacers from both sides took the crucial wickets. Even the batting order showed a lack of game understanding," he concluded.