"Stop right there" - Sanjay Manjrekar's stern message to Rohit Sharma, Gautam Gambhir after India's BGT 2024-25 defeat

Former batter Sanjay Manjrekar criticized India's decision to not go for specialists in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy and instead back players who can contribute a bit with both bat and ball. Manjrekar admitted that the approach worked in the first Test in Perth but added that it harmed India in the long run.

Australia beat India by six wickets in fifth and final Test in Sydney on Sunday, January 5 to clinch the series 3-1. The visitors won the first Test in Perth by 295 runs but were hammered in three of the remaining four Tests.

During an interaction on ESPNcricinfo, Manjrekar opined that the management's decision to add cushion to their struggling batting line-up meant that the team balance went for a complete toss:

"India were slowly and steadily going away from specialists. The history of Test cricket will tell you that it has never worked. May have worked in one or two games where you have guys more for their secondary skill."

Asked whether India should review their approach and go back to their tried and tested formula of backing specialists, Manjrekar emphatically replied:

"They should stop dead in their tracks. (Ravindra) Jadeja I can understand, but after that you had a Washington Sundar. You had a Nitish Kumar Reddy, but Jadeja is likely to be more consistent as a batter. India should stop right there and go back to having pure batters and pure bowlers."

Manjrekar also questioned skipper Rohit Sharma's role as leader of the team. He said that Rohit should have had a greater say in team selection even if new coach Gautam Gambhir might have had different thoughts:

"Rahul Dravid was a big one on specialists and giving everybody a long rope. Somewhere, the onus was more on Rohit Sharma to continue what has been a winning kind of approach. The captain should have played a stronger role in team selection. More depth India had, more matches they lost eventually."

With a 3-1 win, Australia regained the Border-Gavaskar Trophy after a decade. Pat Cummins and co. also qualified for the World Test Championship final, knocking India and Sri Lanka out of the race.

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How India's 'all-rounders' fared in BGT 2024-25

Reddy played all five matches in BGT 2024-25, scoring 298 runs at an average of 37.25, including a hundred in Melbourne. He, however, managed only five wickets with his medium pace, averaging 38.

Jadeja featured in three Tests and scored 135 runs at an average of 27, with one half-century. With his left-arm spin, he picked up four wickets at an average of 54.50. Sundar also played three matches, scoring 114 runs at an average of 22.80, with a best of 50. With his off spin, he claimed three scalps at an average of 38.66.