NEW DELHI: India assistant coach Ryan ten Doeschate offered a candid assessment after the second ODI, conceding that all-rounder Nitish Kumar Reddy has yet to make the most of the chances coming his way, often struggling to leave a meaningful impact.
He also pointed out that captain Rohit Sharma is still lacking match practice despite featuring in two Vijay Hazare Trophy games.
Reddy, the only change to India's playing XI for the Rajkot ODI, endured a disappointing outing, failing to influence the contest with either bat or ball as India suffered a seven-wicket defeat to New Zealand on Wednesday.
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"With Nitish, we keep talking about developing him and getting him game time and then when you do get him game time, he often ends up not doing a heck of a lot in the games," ten Doeschate told reporters after the match.
Pressure mounts on Reddy
Ten Doeschate suggested that the second ODI was a key chance for Reddy to stake his claim, but the all-rounder was unable to deliver. He scored just 20 runs and failed to pick up a wicket in his two overs as New Zealand comfortably overhauled India's 284-run target, sealing a seven-wicket win to draw level in the three-match series.
"For someone who's making their way, particularly with the bat tonight (Wednesday), it was that perfect chance where you're walking in that situation and you've got a chance to spend 15 overs at the wicket. You really have to take those chances to push your case to be selected," the former Dutch player added.
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Looking back, Doeschate conceded that India may have been better served by including an extra specialist spinner in place of Reddy, especially after seeing how New Zealand's spinners made full use of the conditions.
"If you look at the combinations we have played in the past, we do like the extra spinner. To bring Ayush (Badoni) into the squad at the very last minute with Washy (Washington Sundar) going down in the (last) game, we thought Nitish should be better suited on this track," he said.
"Looking at the way the New Zealand spinners bowled, we could have done (it) with another spinner."
Concerns over Rohit's form
In a season where both Indian superstars, Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma, returned to the premier domestic 50-over competition for their respective state teams following the BCCI's diktat, ten Doeschate said the latter is "short on cricket".
"Rohit, I thought tonight particularly, both innings was a real new-ball wicket. It didn't look easy to bat. Over a short period of time if you take the first ODI, he's (Rohit) not been as fluent as he has been and that's going to be a challenge for him, not playing cricket between series," ten Doeschate said.
Asked if Rohit has made a conscious approach to change his batting style according to the wicket, he said, "I don't think it's a conscious approach.
"He's such a brutal player, but he's actually a touch player at the end of the day. He times the ball... so as soon as the wickets aren't very good, it's going to be difficult for him to look in fluent mode like he normally is.
"He's definitely not the sort of guy to play for himself. It's just a combination of the wickets being slightly difficult and maybe just being a little bit short on cricket leading into the series."
Doeschate lauds Rahul
Ten Doeschate said given the form KL Rahul is in, he could be sent in at No 5.
"KL is certainly good enough to be at No. 5. That was a quality hundred there and also the toll that keeping takes on guys in 50-overs cricket, (it) isn't that bad. It's not like we're protecting him," he said.
"One of our strategies in the last 18 months has been to prolong that batting order and we do like to use the all-rounder either high up the order or at No. 5 like we've done with Washy in the past.
"But that certainly is an avenue to explore. With KL finding the form that he's in now, he can be a regular No. 5 and (then) you play all-rounders," he added.
The former Dutch player also defended Ravindra Jadeja for his ordinary returns in ODIs of late.
"I don't think he's feeling the heat. His stats are crazy and he's probably been a bit light on wickets of late.
"But it's not a concern. The things we've looked at in terms of his pace that he's bowling, the things we've asked him to work on, I feel like he is actually bowling better. So, hopefully the wickets will follow with a bit of a lag," he added.
(With PTI Inputs)
'Short on cricket': India coach makes bold comment on Rohit Sharma's form
NEW DELHI: India assistant coach Ryan ten Doeschate offered a candid assessment after the second ODI, conceding that all-rounder Nitish Kumar Reddy has yet to make the most of the chances coming his way, often struggling to leave a meaningful impact.
He also pointed out that captain Rohit Sharma is still lacking match practice despite featuring in two Vijay Hazare Trophy games.
Reddy, the only change to India's playing XI for the Rajkot ODI, endured a disappointing outing, failing to influence the contest with either bat or ball as India suffered a seven-wicket defeat to New Zealand on Wednesday.
Rohit Sharma's slowest start in a Decade: A stat that will shock you
"With Nitish, we keep talking about developing him and getting him game time and then when you do get him game time, he often ends up not doing a heck of a lot in the games," ten Doeschate told reporters after the match.
Pressure mounts on Reddy
Ten Doeschate suggested that the second ODI was a key chance for Reddy to stake his claim, but the all-rounder was unable to deliver. He scored just 20 runs and failed to pick up a wicket in his two overs as New Zealand comfortably overhauled India's 284-run target, sealing a seven-wicket win to draw level in the three-match series.
"For someone who's making their way, particularly with the bat tonight (Wednesday), it was that perfect chance where you're walking in that situation and you've got a chance to spend 15 overs at the wicket. You really have to take those chances to push your case to be selected," the former Dutch player added.
‘You have to adapt’: Daryl Mitchell opens up after match-winning knock in Rajkot
Looking back, Doeschate conceded that India may have been better served by including an extra specialist spinner in place of Reddy, especially after seeing how New Zealand's spinners made full use of the conditions.
"If you look at the combinations we have played in the past, we do like the extra spinner. To bring Ayush (Badoni) into the squad at the very last minute with Washy (Washington Sundar) going down in the (last) game, we thought Nitish should be better suited on this track," he said.
"Looking at the way the New Zealand spinners bowled, we could have done (it) with another spinner."
Concerns over Rohit's form
In a season where both Indian superstars, Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma, returned to the premier domestic 50-over competition for their respective state teams following the BCCI's diktat, ten Doeschate said the latter is "short on cricket".
"Rohit, I thought tonight particularly, both innings was a real new-ball wicket. It didn't look easy to bat. Over a short period of time if you take the first ODI, he's (Rohit) not been as fluent as he has been and that's going to be a challenge for him, not playing cricket between series," ten Doeschate said.
Asked if Rohit has made a conscious approach to change his batting style according to the wicket, he said, "I don't think it's a conscious approach.
"He's such a brutal player, but he's actually a touch player at the end of the day. He times the ball... so as soon as the wickets aren't very good, it's going to be difficult for him to look in fluent mode like he normally is.
"He's definitely not the sort of guy to play for himself. It's just a combination of the wickets being slightly difficult and maybe just being a little bit short on cricket leading into the series."
Doeschate lauds Rahul
Ten Doeschate said given the form KL Rahul is in, he could be sent in at No 5.
"KL is certainly good enough to be at No. 5. That was a quality hundred there and also the toll that keeping takes on guys in 50-overs cricket, (it) isn't that bad. It's not like we're protecting him," he said.
"One of our strategies in the last 18 months has been to prolong that batting order and we do like to use the all-rounder either high up the order or at No. 5 like we've done with Washy in the past.
"But that certainly is an avenue to explore. With KL finding the form that he's in now, he can be a regular No. 5 and (then) you play all-rounders," he added.
The former Dutch player also defended Ravindra Jadeja for his ordinary returns in ODIs of late.
"I don't think he's feeling the heat. His stats are crazy and he's probably been a bit light on wickets of late.
"But it's not a concern. The things we've looked at in terms of his pace that he's bowling, the things we've asked him to work on, I feel like he is actually bowling better. So, hopefully the wickets will follow with a bit of a lag," he added.
(With PTI Inputs)