India’s defeat in the first Test vs England at Headingley is just a bitter pill to swallow. With Yashasvi Jaiswal, KL Rahul, Shubman Gill and Rishabh Pant scoring tons.. India managed to blow up the match from a position of utmost strength. In their last 9 matches (3 vs NZ, 5 vs AUS, and 1 vs ENG), we have just managed to win one clash, that too in Perth.
South Africa in this time has won 8, Australia 6, England 5, New Zealand 4, Pakistan 3, Sri Lanka 3, West Indies 2, and Bangladesh 2 as well. That stat is concerning, as well as alarming. But why is the Test team failing so much, that too suddenly. In 2024 Nov they lost their first series at home in over a decade, then couldn’t retain the BGT? What is ailing the Indian Test team? Is it the batting, bowling or fielding?
In Last 9 Test matches – Won 8 matches – Won 6 matches – Won 5 matches – Won 4 matches – Won 3 matches – Won 3 matches – Won 2 matches – Won 2 matches – Won 1 match*#ENGvsIND
— ?????? (@Shebas_10dulkar) June 24, 2025Poor Fielding, Shoddy Catching
Catches wins you matches; India never took this seriously, it seems. Let us not go very far and consider only the Leeds Test. India dropped some sitters. Yashasvi Jaiswal dropped four catches in the match. The very safe Ravindra Jadeja also let a couple slip, along with a one tough chance for Pant. In fact, Bumrah on his own bowling dropped one.
Harry Brook, during his first innings, was dropped once on 0, then in 40 and then in his 60s. He eventually made 99. Ben Duckett was dropped on 98 in the second by Jaiswal again, who went on to win it for England with 149. Fielding too was too casual. There was an instance where the hosts needed 80-odd, and Shardul slipped while fielding, didn’t get up in time, as the batters stole three. So bad fielding, coupled with bad catching certainly makes India look ordinary.
Ineffective Tail
We are not talking about the all-rounders, but pure bowlers, across the world can just hang around a bit and score some valuable runs for the team. That aspect is missing with the Indian team. Bumrah, Siraj, and let’s take Prasidh Krishna for now — are all poor batters, who just can’t seem to add any runs.
Look at teams like Australia. Pat Cummins averages 17 with the bat, Starc 20.50, Hazlewood 12, and Lyon 12. This current England side, Woakes averages 26, Carse 19.33, Josh Tongue 10, and Shoaib Bashir 7. So, that is another gap that needs to be filled.
The All-rounder Dilemma
Shardul Thakur isn’t an all-rounder and we tried to play him as one. As a result, he failed with the bat twice, and wasn’t given enough overs to bowl. India seriously lacks a decent fast-bowling all-rounder. Nitish Kumar Reddy was impressive with the bat in Australia, but bowled way too less, and just wasn’t effective.
Only effective player has been Ravindra Jadeja, who has scored 1103 runs at an average of 29 and picked up 57 wickets in 28 matches. India needs some more quality players like that. And if one argues, we have the likes of Axar Patel, Tanush Kotian and Washington Sundar, those lads need to be given opportunites.
Lack of Trust in Domestic Players?
Is the management a bit unsure about trying out domestic performers? At least that appears to be the case. Yes, Karun Nair has come back after 8 years, and Sai Sudharsan has been given a chance fairly early, but what about the players who have been playing so well in Ranji over the years. There is a certain Sarfaraz Khan, who has been dropped without trying in Australia.. then Abhimanyu Easwaran, who gets picked in the squad, but is just a reserve opener.
No Stability In Team
There seems to be a need to just replace players after one bad game. There have been far too many new players who have come in, and some of them have vanished already. Since 2023-23 as many as 9 players have made their debut and some of them have vanished from the scene already.
Sarfaraz Khan is dropped, Rajat Patidar isn’t in the setup altogether. Then if we go further back, Mukesh Kumar has vanished, Ishan Kishan, Suryakumar Yadav and KS Bharat seem outdated. So, there needs to be some stability.
What ails the Indian Test team? Inside Sport India.
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