2nd Test: Sudharsan will never be seen being under pressure or changing his style of playing, says Kotak

New Delhi, Oct 10 (IANS) India batting coach Sitanshu Kotak lauded B Sai Sudharsan for never being looked at from the outside as being under pressure or changing his style of batting after the left-hander compiled a composed 87 on day one of the second and final Test against West Indies at the Arun Jaitley Stadium on Friday.

Sudharsan’s innings, his second Test fifty and first fifty in India, laced with 12 boundaries, came in a game-defining 193-run stand with Yashasvi Jaiswal and helped India reach 318/2 at stumps.

Sudharsan, who had scored just 147 runs in seven Tests so far and had been under a bit of scrutiny coming into the clash, walked in early after K.L. Rahul’s dismissal and showed no signs of pressure. His back-foot dominant game against spin was on full display, with several crisp punches and drives through the off side -- two of which stood out against spinner Jomel Warrican.

He even had a reprieve on 58 when short mid-wicket dropped his catch off medium pacer Justin Greaves. "We all know how talented he is. Every time, probably you won't look at the score - you look at the batsman, how he's batting, pacing his innings, and what kind of shots he plays."

"Sometimes, in one or two innings, anybody can fail. But he batted brilliantly today. I don't think he's someone who is mentally very tough, but you'll never see him under pressure, and he changes his style of playing. Whatever it is, he always plays on the merit of the ball.”

“So, the same way he batted today. One might think what will happen if Sai gets out again. But you will see from the first ball of his innings that he never looked to think that way, and this is the quality batter we all know," said Kotak in the post-day press conference.

However, his preference for playing off the back foot also led to his dismissal, trapped lbw by a turning delivery from Warrican, something which Kotak did acknowledge can be improved upon for the future.

"See, Sai obviously, coming from Tamil Nadu, they play a lot on turning wickets. So, he's pretty good against spin. I think his back-foot game and some shots he plays on the back foot, not many players play. It's a lot of balls that he negotiates on the back foot, which most of the players would negotiate on the front foot. The only thing we talk about is that some of the very full balls also sometimes he plays on the back foot. So, we're trying to cut out on that.”

“He very much knows that, and he tries for it. Obviously, if the line is outside the off stump, the same length, he could easily go front foot and play. The impact would be outside off stump like that. So, all that we discussed. But his overall game against spin is a lot more on the back foot than front foot.”

“With his bat swing, the way he bats, the amount of power he generates on the back foot is also amazing. Some of the shots, if you've seen, through mid off, extra cover, mid wicket, and all - that is his strength. I don't think it makes any difference to him whether it is spinners or fast bowlers bowling - he bats equally well.”

“I've been seeing him for the last 2-3 years in India A and all - England A series, he batted in 3 games, he got 100 and 199. I don't think wicket or anything matters to him. But I would definitely say that yes, on a turning track, he is a very, very good player and exactly knows what areas he needs to get better at as well,” he elaborated.

Sudharsan’s innings, marked by control and conviction, was a reflection of both his unflappable temperament and the team’s backing in him being seen as a long-term investment at number three in Tests. Kotak concluded by reinforcing the idea that each batter has their own method of playing spin in the modern-day era.

"See, I honestly feel that it's more of a mindset thing - whether you step out or you have shots playing from the crease, I don't think it has to be any particular thing. Some guys play step-out shots well, while a few play sweep and cut well. Some guys are good at just staying on the wicket and playing on the front foot."

"So, every individual, the way they are brought up, and the conditions they have been brought up in. For me, the important thing is the temperament which we see in red-ball, which, honestly, I'm saying I was so happy seeing it in England because we planned that we'll play like this.”

"Everybody, if you see, is very excited to see Jaiswal in the way he batted today. Even Gill, KL, and Jaddu batted very well. Anyone you take, even Washington, if you go back and you see that, the way they have approached it was a completely positive approach. We are trying to score 350-360 runs in a day, which is 4 and over. If we bowl 80 overs only, obviously, we still have 320, that kind of a score. So, we felt, with a positive intent also, the amount of skill our batters possess, I don't think everybody needs to have any particular kind of a game.”

“So, say, KL and Gill would step out, Jaiswal would if he sees the flight. But it's not compulsory. (Cheteshwar) Pujara was different; he was someone who would love to step out and try to see that the bowler would bowl short, and then he would play a cut. So, his game was great in the way he wanted to play. He was someone who was trying to make the bowler bowl the way he wanted. But then everyone has a different strength."

"So, like today, Shubman, the first shot he played over mid-wicket, the ball was coming obviously slow, and probably he felt he wanted to start that way - a couple of good shots like that. There's nothing wrong, and at the same time, he may have got a top edge to get out, and we would feel what he has done. But in a dressing room, we know what we are trying to do, and I think most of the time, we are executing brilliantly. So, it's great to see the way we are playing in red ball as a batting unit."

--IANS

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