India beat New Zealand by 4 runs through the DLS method in the second ODI on Saturday, November 7
Axar Patel was sent in at No. 5 ahead of KL Rahul while India chased 135
Gavaskar said experimentation is part of captaincy and the reaction would have changed if Axar had scored
'Nothing Wrong With It': Former India Captain Defends Gautam Gambhir's Tactics After Axar Patel Gamble Fails
India's former captain Sunil Gavaskar has defended Gautam Gambhir and Shubman Gill's decision to send Axar Patel at No. 5 against New Zealand on Saturday, November 7. Gavaskar feels that it is okay to experiment and that the reaction would have been very different if it had worked
Summary
India's former captain Sunil Gavaskar backs head coach Gautam Gambhir and captain Shubman Gill for sending Axar Patel to bat at No. 5 against New Zealand.
He feels that there is no harm in experimentation and the reaction could have been different if Axar had scored.
India won the 2nd ODI against New Zealand by 4 runs via the DLS method on Saturday, November 7.
However, India's route to victory was not easy, despite chasing a modest target of 135. At one point, India slipped to 39/3, and Axar Patel walked in. He was welcomed with a barrage of bouncers before getting out for 7 and India slipped to 47/4.
In came KL Rahul, who stitched a partnership with Shreyas Iyer and stayed not out before rain interrupted the match, with it eventually being called off and India being declared the winner.
Many questioned the decision to send Axar at 5, despite Rahul's stellar record at the position.
However, Gavaskar said: "The bowlers have slight difficulty if a left-handed batter comes because you have to change the line and length you would have for a right-hander. In trying to do that, your line can change slightly even to the right-hander, where more chances of getting runs are created."
"There was nothing wrong with that thought process. If Axar had scored runs, you would have said how good the captaincy was. Such moves work at times and don't work on other occasions, and it didn't work this time. You also knew there was a solid player like Rahul after him. That's why you experiment at times," he added, speaking on the Sony Sports network after the game.
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Best At Fifth Position
KL Rahul has batted at many positions for India. He has opened the innings for India and also came in at No. 7, but his numbers have been different at the fifth position. He has played 36 innings at the position, scoring 1,646 runs.
His average at the position has been 68.58, keeping his strike rate over 103.19. This is his best performance at any position.
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