Why did he overbowl Siraj and underbowl Ashwin?
The Indian cricket team's eight wicket defeat to New Zealand in Bengaluru ignited a storm of criticism, with Captain Rohit Sharma bearing the brunt of the blame.
Former India batter Sanjay Manjrekar expressed surprise over some of Rohit's bowling choices, particularly in New Zealand's final innings. He was particularly critical of the extended spell given to Mohammed Siraj, who bowled six overs in the early stages of the chase, despite the conditions not favouring his style of bowling.
'I can understand Siraj getting one or two overs and Bumrah getting a long spell. But Siraj getting 6 overs in that forespell, I think that is far too many and already a lot of runs on the board, and you had that little margin to chase,' Manjrekar said on ESPNcricinfo.
Manjrekar also questioned the underuse of India's premier spinner, Ravichandran Ashwin. He argued that Ashwin, with his experience and precision, could have been brought into the attack much earlier.
'Another part is Ashwin. When there is no lavish turn on the pitch, the captain tends to use him with a new ball. He would have been tough for the Kiwi batters had he started off with Bumrah, and even if he had come in in the fourth over of the innings,' Manjrekar said.
'The thing with pacers, you might get wickets, but there are always runs coming through edges... I was a bit surprised, I think tactically for Rohit Sharma, this Test match wasn't his greatest.'
