‘You Should Not Be Playing An International Game’; Gautam Gambhir Slams Arshdeep Singh After His Five No Balls Against Sri Lanka
New Delhi: Indian cricketer turner commentator Gautam Gambhir slams Arshdeep Singh after his five no-balls against Sri Lanka. Arshdeep Singh who was out of International cricket since the T20 World Cup due to illness has made a comeback in the 2nd T20I against Sri Lanka. Arshdeep bowled five no-balls and conceded 37 runs in the two overs he bowled in the second T20I between India and Sri Lanka in Pune on Thursday, January 5.
Sri Lanka set a massive 207 runs target for team India and eventually won the match by 16 runs. During a post-match discussion on Star Sports, Gambhir was asked about his thoughts on Arshdeep Singh’s no-ball issues, to which he responded:
“Imagine seven balls, it’s like bowling more than 21 overs. Everyone bowls bad balls or plays bad shots but it’s about the rhythm. If you are coming after an injury, you should not be playing an international game.”
“You should be going to domestic cricket and getting your rhythm back because no-balls are not acceptable. Whoever is injured and there is a long layoff, he has to go back to domestic cricket, bowl 15-20 overs, come back and then play an international game, and that was squarely seen when Arshdeep Singh was struggling with his rhythm.”
“As I just mentioned, you can have a shocker. Fielders can have a shocker, batters can play bad shots, bowlers can bowl those shocking deliveries but this thing is not acceptable. You might be doing it in the nets, during the practice sessions, that’s the reason you do it in the match as well.”
“So it’s up to the bowling coach to probably work on that as well because you have got to be harsh in the practice sessions. You just can’t blame something else. Yes, it is tough for the captain to set fields. Seven no-balls and imagine conceding 30-odd runs in those seven balls was a massive difference.”
The third and decisive T20I of the three-match series will be played in Rajkot on Saturday.