“The players seemed confused because there was a lack of communication”

Discarded Indian mixer Ajinkya Rahane made scathing criticism after the humiliating 0-2 Test series defeat against South Africa. The hosts lost the second Test by a huge margin of 408 runs. Rahane called for better communication after the defeat.

He felt that the players were confused about their role on the team due to a lack of communication. For example, he expressed it Nitish Kumar Reddy he could have come in to bat at number four in the second innings of the second Test instead of Kuldeep Yadav being sent in as a night watchman.

“The players looked confused because there was a lack of communication. We played with nine batsmen in the second Test. When Kuldeep came to bat at four as a night watchman, if you have nine batsmen, it is important to send them in himself. Nitish Reddy came in at number nine, I think his contribution could have been better at four or five. You have to protect your batsman instead of trying to protect your positive batsmen instead of focusing on them. YouTube channel

Rahane further stated that the confusion in the batting order meant that the Indian batsmen did not have enough confidence and clarity. Washington Sundar he batted at number three in the first Test but dropped to number eight in the second. Rahane called for stability in the batting order going forward.

“There was confusion in the mix. I have also said this earlier that your batting order is very important. The top four batsmen should play in the same position, which will give them confidence and clarity in the role. If you bat at each number, the situations are different and need different skills. The top four batsmen should be fixed and given that string,” he added.

India were bowled out for 140 in the second innings on the fifth day, surviving just 63.5 overs. Set a target of 549, they could not save the test.

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Ajinkya Rahane on Indian batsmen requiring better preparation on spin tracks

Ajinkya Rahane also felt that the Indian batsmen did not have enough preparation to play at home. He pointed out that the batsmen hardly played on these wickets in domestic cricket, which is why they came up against the South African spinners.

“When you play in India, it's not easy to play spin. We play very little spin in domestic cricket. You need to have proper preparation. Have a camp at least 10 days before and have good training sessions. We always tell Indian players that they play spin well, but that has not been the case in recent times. You need to have ideal preparation,” he said.

Simon Harmer took 17 wickets in the two games while Keshav Maharaj also chipped in with six wickets. Rahane also felt that the hosts' batsmen were surprised and unprepared for the extra bounce Marco Jansen generated The tall left-armer bagged six wickets in the first innings of the second Test to push the hosts on the back foot.

“The Indian batsmen were surprised by the bounce that Jansen got. He bowled consistently at one place. When you play a bowler who is tall and gets extra bounce, you have to know how to use the bounce. We were in a good position in the first innings but we lost quick wickets.”

The home side suffered their second home whitewash in recent times, following a 0-3 defeat at new zealand in 2024.