Shikhar Dhawan's run-out was the turning point, reckons Sourav Ganguly

Former Indian skipper Sourav Ganguly is closely following the ongoing India’s tour of England. Ganguly recently tried to analyse the potential reasons behind India’s failure in the 2nd T20I against England at Cardiff. After having won the first game at Manchester, the Indian side was expected to dictate terms at Cardiff as well. But India ended up losing by 5 wickets and the series now stands leveled at 1-1.

As per the recent quotes in India TV, Sourav Ganguly remarked that the prime reason behind the defeat was the lack of runs on the board. India, after having been asked to bat first, could only muster 148 runs on the board. Ganguly cited that the Indian spinners need backing from their batsmen in order to bowl attacking lines. With low scores on the board, things get tougher for the spin bowlers.

“They didn’t make enough runs. You cannot win a match by posting a score of 148. England bowled well, the surface was different from Manchester, as there was more grass and it carried a lot of pace, which played to England’s advantage. Kuldeep and Chahal leaked 64 runs and that’s why they won. You expect England to make a comeback in England. It’s a challenging series, the fight will be worth it and surely the same can be expected in the ODIs,” Sourav Ganguly told India TV.

On poor show by Kuldeep, Chahal

Commenting further on the same note, Sourav Ganguly noted that it is totally fine to have an off day at work. He conceded that the spinners can have off days just like the batsmen have at times. He reiterated that the pressure can only mount up on the English side if there are a lot of runs piled up by the Indian batsmen.

“Like how every batsman has a rough day at work, so did these two (Kuldeep and Chahal). In a 20-over match, it’s not always going to be when Kuldeep picks up three or five wickets in every match. He should forget about his performance in Cardiff and should focus on Bristol. For Kuldeep and Chahal to apply pressure on the team, India need to score runs, even if they start the match slow. Taking into consideration about Bristol’s field, there will be pressure on the bowlers,” Ganguly remarked.

The turning point, the opening woes

Unlike the first T20I, team India failed to get going in the powerplay. Three top wickets fell in quick succession which pushed the visitors on the backfoot. Sourav Ganguly pointed out the same and quipped that Shikhar Dhawan’s run out was perhaps the turning point in the game.

He rightly quoted that Shikhar Dhawan has tasted immense success in English conditions and hence, his wicket was the big one in the context of the game. Talking about the other opener, Rohit Sharma, Ganguly admitted that the veteran cricketer has had a poor start. He, however, believes that Rohit will bounce back in time and perform well.

“It’s a T20 match. You have to play shots to score runs. Shikhar Dhawan’s run-out was the turning point of the match. He plays well in these conditions but he should have returned to the crease. After losing three early wickets, India felt the pressure cause Kohli and Raina had to rebuild,” noted the former Indian captain.

“It’s been a slow start for him in this series. He’s a good player no doubt as he has scored in these conditions such as the Champions Trophy and the last time India toured England. He’ll slowly find his rhythm. I’m not worried about him and the rest of the Indian batsman. It was a day when England played better than India,” Ganguly mentioned.

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