Virender Sehwag voices concerns over India’s declining ability to tackle spin

He attributes it to a lack of quality spinners

He emphasizes modern-day bowlers rarely flight the ball

Former India opener Virender Sehwag has voiced concerns over India’s declining ability to tackle spin, attributing it to a lack of quality spinners and reduced exposure to spin in domestic cricket. Sehwag, known for his aggressive approach against spinners, emphasized that modern-day bowlers rarely flight the ball, which hampers their wicket-taking ability in formats like T20.

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“One reason is that with more white-ball cricket, spinners aren’t developing the skill to get batsmen out. In T20 cricket, you bowl 24 balls and don’t flight them, so that skill doesn’t develop,” Sehwag told Amar Ujwala. He believes this trend, combined with Indian players’ reduced participation in domestic cricket, has contributed to the problem.

“In our time, players like Dravid, Sachin, Ganguly, Laxman, and Yuvraj regularly played domestic cricket, which gave us the opportunity to face spinners. But with today’s packed schedule and various leagues, players have less time, and the skill of playing spin is not being honed,” Sehwag added.

Sehwag’s comments come in the wake of India’s recent ODI series defeat to Sri Lanka, where Indian batters lost 27 out of 30 wickets to spinners. As the Men in Blue struggle against quality spin, Sehwag’s analysis points to a fundamental gap in both spin bowling and preparation against spin, underscoring a major challenge for coach Gautam Gambhir.