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Sairaj Bahutule, the interim bowling coach of India, spoke about how the Indian batters will be getting “ample opportunities to bowl” in limited-overs cricket. After India and Sri Lanka tied the first ODI of the three-match series, in the press conference, Bahutule also stated that the game would belong to the all-rounders.
Notably, in the first ODI at the R Premadasa Stadium in Colombo, Shivam Dube and Shubman Gill bowled for India against Sri Lanka apart from the genuine all-rounders Axar Patel and Washington Sundar. It showcased how much the new Indian team management under head coach Gautam Gambhir wants to develop the secondary skills of most of the batters in the squad.
Indian batters will have ample opportunities to bowl: Sairaj Bahutule
While speaking in the press conference, Sairaj Bahutule alluded to the third T20I of the three-match series between India and Sri Lanka, where the likes of Rinku Singh and Suryakumar Yadav picked up two wickets each in the last couple of overs. He said, as per the Times of India, “I think our batters are good bowlers as well, to be honest. You know their primary skill is batting, so at times, they don't focus much on their bowling. But they have the skills.”
“You might have seen in the T20Is… Rinku and Surya contributed with the ball. So, an opportunity was given to Shubman here. It's going to be an all-rounder's game in the coming days,” he added.
Sairaj Bahutule also explained the importance of the Indian batters taking up bowling in times to come. He remarked, “So, if one or two (batsmen) from the top-order can bowl it will definitely help the team, of course, depending on pitch conditions and situations. Also, it will be a surprise element to the opposition, if a batter can bowl. So, moving ahead there will be ample opportunities for batters to bowl,” he explained.”
