'How many centuries they have scored in the last 3 years?', World Cup winner slams Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli ahead of 3rd ODI vs Bangladesh

Former cricketer and World Cup winner Madan Lal has questioned Team India's intent while playing for country and has advised cricketers to plan their break during IPL and not during international matches

Source: Twitter

Indian cricket team's performance in the white-ball has come under a big scanner, especially after they lost the ODI series to Bangladesh. The Men In Blue seem to be going nowhere in terms of planning for the shorter versions of the game. They lost the Asia Cup 2022 after which the T20I side saw debacle in the T20 World Cup 2022 in Australia. They won the rain-affected T20I series before losing the ODIs in New Zealand. The loss to Bangladesh has come under leadership of Rohit Sharma who played with almost the full-strength side. 

In every series, one sees a different playing XI. Players keep getting injured or rested due to workload management. Team India is not showing enough 'josh', feels former India cricketer and 1983 World Cup winner Madan Lal. "Definitely the Indian team is not going in the right direction. I have not seen the intensity in the team off late. I have not seen 'Josh' in them in the last couple of years," Lal told PTI in an interview.

Lal went on to say that Indian cricketers of present lack the passion of playing for the country. 

_ _ "Rohit's courage with the bat was phenomenal."

Head Coach Rahul Dravid lauds #TeamIndia captain @ImRo45 for his brave fight despite an injury in the 2_nd #BANvIND ODI. pic.twitter.com/sZecPgpp6u

— BCCI (@BCCI) December 8, 2022

"They are not looking like an Indian team at all. That passion of playing for the country is missing. Either their bodies are too tired or they are just going through the motions. And this is a serious concern."

Further, Lal questioned the the star-studded Indian batting lineup, targetting the seniors in the team - Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma. 

"If you see the record, how many centuries they (seniors) have scored in the last three years? And how many in the last one year? With age factor, your hand-eye coordination slows down. But they are experienced players and they should have performed. If your top order does not perform you are not going to win," said Lal. 

He slammed the management in the Indian cricket team saying that players should take rest, if they want to during IPL, and not during international assignments. He said that the reason for such a huge number of injuries should be found out and dealth with.