India legend Kapil Dev has sounded serious warnings for Rohit Sharma and co in the ongoing T20 World Cup 2022 and said that loopholes are still visible in the bowling department despite the Men in Blue topping Group 2 in the super 12s stage after two wins in two matches.
India is the only unbeaten team in the tournament and is just one more win away from really consolidating their semi-final chances. Indian batting came to the fore in a very good win over the Netherlands as Rohit Sharma, Suryakumar Yadav and Virat Kohli scored half-centuries.
However, Kapil Dev shot an alarming warning to Rohit and Co. ahead of the next tie against South Africa in Perth on Sunday. He pointed out a couple of shortcomings and some issues that the Indian team needs to address if they are to go all the way.
"The bowling has gotten better. In batting, I felt India could have scored more runs but in the last 10 overs, made up for it by scoring over 100 runs. See, the grounds are big and hence, the spinners gain a little bit of advantage. I would still say that in patches we are still lacking in bowling," Kapil said on ABP News.
"Against a team like the Netherlands, you should have proper planning as to where to bowl in terms of line and length. The biggest thing is that in such matches, there should not be no-balls or wides because you are practicing and need to win the match as well. So overall, I would say, the bowling was good but still some loopholes were visible," he added.
Kohli and Suryakumar Yadav added 95* runs as India belted off 112 runs in the last 10 overs against the Netherlands as Rohit Sharma spent some time in the middle scoring 53 in 39 balls.
With the ball, Bhuvneshwar Kumar bowled two consecutive maiden overs at the start, but India gave away three wides and a no-ball.
However, Kapil Dev was all praises for Suryakumar Yadav who played a stupendous knock of 51* in 25 balls, while Kohli played anchor with 62* in 44 balls.
"Suryakumar Yadav has really grabbed his chances well in this team. To score runs so quickly, he should be praised more. India would still want their captain Rohit Sharma to be a little more compact and want Rahul to score some runs. Virat Kohli should play anchor because he can accelerate, but if he gets the chance to play through the entire 20 overs, this team can chase down any total. In the last 1-2 years, he was the player we were struggling to find - who is going to bat for us at No.4? There were players but not the kind of contenders we have found in Suryakumar," mentioned Kapil.
