“If You Tell Virat Kohli To Bat Like Suryakumar Yadav…”: Gautam Gambhir On ‘Template’ Debate | Cricket News

The countdown for the 2023 ODI World Cup has begun, with the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) reportedly shortlisting 20 players who will be groomed for this year’s mega event. Though the names of those players have not been revealed, the importance of selecting them based on the ‘template’ the team is going to adopt is being discussed. In a discussion on the same, former India cricketer Gautam Gambhir highlighted how one player can’t be asked to play like the other. Hence, the selection of players, based on the ‘template’ is crucial.

“First, you need to identify the players who got that fearless approach and probably in a format like 50 overs you need to have a mixture of every kind of player. There are players who can anchor their innings. Change in the role has also made a huge difference. During that time we had only one new ball, now we’ve got two new balls with five fielders inside. So, the role of a part-timer has gone out of the window. The reverse swings, you don’t see enough reverse swings anymore, you don’t see enough of chase for the finger spinners as well. But, I always feel that when we talk about this new approach, which India always talks about, the template and stuff, you’ve got to identify players who can adapt those roles or that template very easily,” Gambhir said on Star Sports show ‘Road to World Cup Glory’.

Gambhir also gave the example of the likes of Virat Kohli and Suryakumar Yadav, who both have contrasting styles of play.

“I can’t play like Yousuf (Pathan), he can’t play like me. If someone asks me to follow Yousuf’s template, I won’t be able to do that. Similarly, if someone asks Yousuf to follow my template, he won’t be able to do that. That is why the identification of players is very important.

“If you tell Virat Kohli today to bat like Suryakumar Yadav, he can’t. If you ask Surya to play like Virat, he won’t be able to do that,” Gambhir said.

#TeamIndia southpaw @gautamgambhir talks about how each player must play to his strength , ahead of the #ODIWorldCup.

Hear more on our special #CricketKaMahakumbh, LIVE on Star Sports 1 Hindi 10:30PM #INDvSL pic.twitter.com/2t4Fn6D2ZG

— Star Sports (@StarSportsIndia) January 3, 2023

Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma will be key

However, Gambhir also asserted that veterans like Kohli and Rohit Sharma will play a big role for India in the 2023 ODI World Cup because of their ability to play spinners.

“Some people just cannot adapt to that template so why push them to play in a certain way that doesn’t come naturally to them. So, for me, I think identifying players and at the same time getting the right mix is very important, rather than thinking that we have to play at a certain template so we got to select all the 15 with a similar mind-set or with a similar template. I feel people like Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma and all those guys who can anchor their innings, who probably can play spin really well will play a massive role the coming World Cup,” he said.

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