Strike rates are only relevant to bowlers and not for batsmen: Anil Kumble

The Indian team has a wide variety of players. The experienced candidates, the novices and of course there is the legend Anil Kumble around. The team now has a lot of options consider it for the opening slot, or the pacers and even spinners. We have seen Cheteshwar Pujara making way for Rohit Sharma in one game, the other way around in the next and both of them playing together in another one. Head coach Anil Kumble has on multiple occasions said that each player has his unique ability and is equally important for the team.

Ahead of the second Test against New Zealand at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata Kumble said, “I know there is a lot of talk about strike rate after the advent of the T20. As far as I was concerned, when I was playing, mostly strike rates were spoken about for bowlers. In the India team you need different characters. You need different quality players,”

Test cricket changes and so do the demands of the team. According to conditions and oppositions, the team combination needs to be altered for the best results. Pujara was often blamed for his slow paced game but going by what Kumble said they don’t have that as a parameter while considering the performance of a batsman and his overall impact.

“You need different players with different skill set; there are challenges that happen in a Test match because every session is different. That’s the beauty of Test cricket. Strike rates are only relevant to bowlers and not for batsmen. That’s how I like to look at it,” the Indian coach said.

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He also said that he was pleased with the return of Gautam Gambhir in the team since he has earned it having done exceedingly well in the domestic circuit. Kumble was also asked about Pujara and the pressure he is playing with, to which he said that the batsman has no pressure whatsoever from the team’s end it is just something that is projected from the outside.