Suni Gavaskar Advises BCCI To Expand Boundary Ropes As Indian Batters Struggle Overseas
Gavaskar noticed that the shots which were clearing the ropes in the IPL were being caught in the deep in away conditions
XtraTime Newsdesk: India's series failures against Ireland and England have sparked concerns about the batsmen' ability to succeed on difficult surfaces away from home. India was surprised 2-0 by Ireland as the top order failed to fire, and then outplayed 4-0 by England in the five-match series, with the IPL-heavy batting squad attracting significant criticism. However, famed Indian batsman Sunil Gavaskar downplayed worries about flat pitches in India, instead urging the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) to increase boundary widths when the new domestic season begins.
Gavaskar noticed that the shots which were clearing the ropes in the IPL were being caught in the deep in away conditions.
"People have been speaking about the Indian batters hammering the bowling on flat pitches and smaller boundaries in the IPL and then getting exposed in unfamiliar conditions in England. The fact is that there were flat pitches in India, alright, but it's the ridiculously small boundaries that flatter the batter, whose mishits can clear the ropes, while in countries with bigger and longer boundaries these same hits are caught inside the boundary line," Gavaskar wrote in his column for Sportstar.
Gavaskar wants BCCI to push the advertising boards further back so that the boundary becomes bigger as there is huge space left between the the latter and the advertising boards.
"It's absolutely imperative, when the new Indian season begins, to get the boundary sizes increased so that our batters get used to that before the World Cup next year. At virtually every ground, there is plenty of space for people to walk behind the LED advertising boards, so it tells you that if this space is utilised, the boundary size will automatically increase," he added.
Gavaskar also stated that moving the boundary ropes back a few yards will enable Indian spinners take advantage of the conditions by giving the ball greater flight.
"This will also give our spin bowlers the opportunity to bowl a bit slower so that they can get the loop and turn that a slower delivery produces. The medium-pace darters they currently bowl actually help the batter use the pace, get under the ball and power it into the stands. Adil Rashid and Will Jacks bowled almost 8 to 10 km/h slower than the Indian spinners and so were far more effective than them," he said.