Former India batter Sanjay Manjrekar believes England needs to reassess their pace bowling strategy in T20Is following their 4-1 series loss to India. While acknowledging that England has genuine quick bowlers like Jofra Archer and Mark Wood, Manjrekar pointed out that India’s batters were able to capitalize on the extra pace.
In the final T20I at Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai on February 2, India triumphed by 150 runs. Batting first, India posted 247/9, with Abhishek Sharma blasting a sensational 135 off 54 balls, including 7 fours and 13 sixes. The Indian bowlers then skittled England out for just 97 runs in 10.3 overs.
Reflecting on England’s performance, Manjrekar suggested that Jos Buttler’s side should rethink their fast-bowling approach ahead of next year’s World Cup in India. He told ESPNcricinfo that England’s quick bowlers, while speedy, tended to give away “hit-me balls,” which allowed India’s batters to take full advantage.
“They’ve got speedsters, which is a good thing. But if you look at it through the series, the faster their bowlers bowled, the more runs were scored against them. They need to find a better balance. Jamie Overton and Brydon Carse seemed to have better control,”
Manjrekar explained.
“Jofra Archer is quick, but tends to give you certain hit-me balls. They need to figure out whether speed alone is the reason for picking bowlers or if they should consider the more tactical T20 bowlers. When batters like Abhishek Sharma are on, maybe slower bowlers and spinners should come into play,”
he added.
Archer took six wickets in five matches but had an economy rate of 10.30, while Wood claimed four wickets in four games with an economy rate of 8.88. In contrast, Carse claimed nine wickets in four matches at an economy rate of 8.37, and Overton picked up seven wickets in five games at 9.27.
Manjrekar also commented on England’s struggles against India’s spin attack. He felt that England’s approach, which focused on hitting aggressively, failed against India’s spinners.
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“What was disappointing about England was their batting against spin. If India had an all-pace attack, I think England would have managed better. But against India’s quality spin, the new-generation approach just wasn’t working,”
Manjrekar said.
In terms of individual performances, Jos Buttler was England’s top scorer with 146 runs in the series. Other notable contributions came from Ben Duckett (97), Harry Brook (91), Phil Salt (87), and Liam Livingstone (74).BPL.
