Former South African captain Shaun Pollock has advised the Indian cricket team management to pinpoint at least two reliable Test batsmen, similar to Cheteshwar Pujara, to help revive their performances in the longest format. India’s struggles in Test cricket continued with a surprising 0-2 home series loss to South Africa.
After a narrow defeat in the first Test, India suffered their heaviest-ever Test loss in terms of runs—408—in the second Test in Guwahati. This marked India’s third Test series loss in their last five, including two whitewashes on home soil.
Pollock Shares Thoughts On India’s Red-Ball Future After South Africa Test Series
Speaking to Cricbuzz about India’s prospects in red-ball cricket following the South Africa series, Shaun Pollock commented:
“It’s a trend in world cricket that Test match batting is not that easy. Because now people don’t play much four-day or first-class cricket, the art of batting in Tests is lost. So my only suggestion to India is to find two batters who aren’t T20 guys.”
“Guys that play a bit like Cheteshwar Pujara, where he wasn’t really considered in any IPL teams. And develop two of those guys so you have a solid technical backbone in the batting department so you can rely on those guys for 5-10 years to come.”
He further continued:
“The selectors have to identify tempratent and technique. There are certain techniques that have to be good enough to survive in Test cricket. In and around that, you can have your Pants, Jaiswals, who play the T20 stuff but come back and still play Test cricket and add the flair and flamboyance.”
Earlier this year, India missed out on qualifying for the World Test Championship (WTC) final for the first time in the tournament’s history. Their recent defeat against South Africa has also significantly hurt their chances of finishing in the top two of the 2025-27 WTC cycle.
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