Sanjay Manjrekar questioned the role of the 'batting coach' in the Indian team after the top order once again collapsed on Day 3 of the third Test against Australia in Brisbane on Monday.
The Indian team don't have a designated batting coach but Assistant Coach Abhishek Nayar is the one entrusted with sorting out the batter's techniques and working with them in the nets. Ryan ten Doeschate is the other assistant coach under Head Coach Gautam Gambhir while Morne Morkel is the bowling coach and T Dilip the fielding coach.
India were reeling on 48/4 in their first innings on the rain-hit third day with all four batters -- Yashasvi Jaiswal, Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli and Rishabh Pant -- falling caught behind after playing away from the body against the Australian pacers.
Except for the second innings of the first Test in Perth, the Indian batting unit has largely failed to live up to expectations. Jaiswal and Kohli, who both hit a century in Perth, have failed in the other four innings of the series.
Jaiswal stroked 161 in the second innings in Perth but has managed just 28 runs in the other four innings of the series, including two ducks.
Kohli ended his long wait for a century with an unbeaten 100 in Perth, but apart from that his score in the series read 5, 7, 11 and 3 as he continues to fall to loose shots outside the off-stump.
Gill, who missed the Perth Test with injury, failed to capitalise on starts in Adelaide, as he made 31 and 28 and was dismissed for three in the first innings in Brisbane, attempting a loose drive off Mitchell Starc.
Pant has shown intent with his aggressive batting approach but has scored just 97 runs in five innings so far.
Opener K L Rahul has been the only standout player of the series for India with 147 runs in the first two Tests, and continued his form with another good start in the rain-hit Brisbane Test.
'I guess the time has come to scrutinise the role of a batting coach in the Indian team. Why major technical issues have remained unresolved for so long with certain Indian batters?' Manjrekar asked on X.
