“Players ko apne pe belief kam ho gaya hai” - Mohammad Kaif raises concerns over insecurity in Team India after Kolkata test loss

Former Indian cricketer Mohammed Kaif gave a bold statement about team India’s current players feeling insecure after their recent loss in the first Test against South Africa at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata. 

India surprisingly played four spinners in the Test — Kuldeep Yadav, Axar Patel, Washington Sundar, and Ravindra Jadeja. They even dropped Sai Sudharsan and went with all-rounder Washington at number three. 

Before this series, Sai played both Tests against West Indies at home and even scored a beautiful 87 in Delhi. But the team management’s call to play Washington Sundar at number three instead of Sai, and most importantly, the decision to go with so many spinners and all-rounders, left fans confused.

After the loss in Kolkata, Kaif spoke on his YouTube channel and said that there seems to be instability and insecurity in the team. According to him, not all players are being backed by the current team management led by head coach Gautam Gambhir. Because of that, players seem to be playing with fear.

“I think there is a lot of confusion in this team.” - Kaif

He said, “Whichever players are playing, they don’t have a feeling that someone is standing for them. Koi backing nahi hai, sab darr ke khel rahe hain. (There is no backing; everyone is playing with fear.) Sab dar ke khel rahe hain, koi khul ke nahi khel raha (Everyone is playing in fear, nobody is playing with freedom).”

Kaif did not speak only about Sai Sudharsan. He also took the name of Sarfaraz Khan, who has been out of the squad for a long time despite scoring runs. Even after scoring 150 in the New Zealand series — which India lost 0-3 at home — he has not been able to find a place since then.

Kaif said, “If Sarfaraz Khan’s place is not confirmed after 100 scoring a hundred. Even after scoring 100, he’s not able to make a comeback. Sai Sudharsan scored 87. He doesn’t play the next Test match. I think there is a lot of confusion in this team.”

“Players ko apne pe belief kam ho gaya hai, thoda insecurity bhi aa gyi hai (Players are not believing in themselves, there is insecurity as well). When there is insecurity and you come to play at turning tracks, you won’t be able to do well,” He added.

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