Team India was one of the top contenders to win the 2019 World Cup and they also made it to the second round of the tournament with ease. However, Men in Blue faltered in the semi-final against New Zealand, where they failed to chase a target of 240.
Of course, top order’s failure was a reason behind the defeat but Team India also lacked a solid number four batsman who could have steadied the ship. With no reliable option available, the team management sent in Rishabh Pant, who had played less than 10 ODIs. India lost the semi-final by 18 runs.
“What we need to look at is to have somebody at 4, 5 and 6 who are very good batsmen, who would otherwise bat at the top but because 1, 2 and 3 are occupied they are batting in the middle-order. We made a mistake by not having a proper No. 4 at the 2019 World Cup. If we had had a proper No. 4 for the World Cup then it might have been a completely different story,” Sunil Gavaskar said on the latest episode of India Today E-Inspiration.
With Ambati Rayudu making a comeback a year before the ICC event, he looked set for the number 4 job but he had to make way for Vijay Shankar. At the WC, KL Rahul did the number four duties before he was forced to move up due to an injury to Shikhar Dhawan.
The team management has now solved the number 4 puzzle and Shreyas Iyer has been given a long rope in past one year.
