Ravi Shastri has a dialogue with all batsmen, says Bharat Arun on MS Dhoni’s batting struggles

India have had a fantastic run so far in the 2019 World Cup so far having played five games and are yet to face a defeat. They have nine points and are placed third on the points table. Team India may have secured a couple of convincing victories but they had to grind it out against a spirited Afghanistan side.

After opting to bat first in Southampton, India found it tough, especially against the Afghan spinners. Virat Kohli batted like a dream but apart from him, all the other Indian batsmen struggled. They huffed and puffed their way to 224. However, thanks to a brilliant effort by the bowlers which was equally backed up in the field, India eked out an 11-run win.

India’s batting performance was put under scanner and also criticised. MS Dhoni, in particular, struggled for the most part of his knock as he scored 28 off 52 balls and in a bid to accelerate was stumped. There was quite a bit of criticism and that he needed to put the foot down a lot earlier. However, India’s bowling coach Bharat Arun said that there is constant communication and feedback from the management to the batsmen. He revealed that there’s a ‘constant dialogue’ between all the batsmen.

“There is a constant dialogue between all the batsmen, the support staff, the batting coach, the head coach — Ravi Shastri has a constant dialogue with all the coaches. I can’t really get into the brass tacks of what we discuss. But yes if I have to answer your question, there is a constant dialogue for us to improve,” Bharat Arun said in the pre-game press conference.

To compare anybody to the way Virat Kohli plays is not right: Bharat Arun

The way Virat batted in the game against Afghanistan, it seemed like he was batting on a completely different pitch. He was fluent and rotated the strike with ease. In fact, he was the only batsman from both sides to have a strike-rate in excess of a 100. Hence, Bharat Arun feels it’s unfair to compare anybody with Virat.

“I think Virat Kohli is probably the number one batsman across all formats. So I think to compare anybody to the way he plays is not right,” India’s bowling coach added.