Former Australia captain Ian Chappell has drawn the daggers and pointed them towards Gautam Gambhir for India’s excessive use of reverse-sweep in the recently-concluded Test series against New Zealand, which ended in a 0-3 drubbing for the hosts. The reverse-seep was a shot used excessively by the Indian batters throughout the series, and like every high-risk, high-reward, this was no different. Some came off, some didn’t, but the one crucial batter that didn’t connect was India opener Yashasvi Jaiswal during the first innings of the Mumbai Test.
Jaiswal had gotten off to a confident start to reach 30 off 52 balls before he tried to reverse Ajaz Patel and got castled. The dismissal proved to be a pivotal point in the match as India lost the plot and were bowled out for 263 – albeit after a slender lead of 28 runs. Later in the second innings, with India chasing 247, Ravichandran Ashwin paid the price for attempting it. He lost his wicket, thus extinguishing India’s last hope of winning the Wankhede Test.
It is no surprise that ever since the appointment of Gambhir as the India coach, the number of reverse-sweeps played by their batters have risen exponentially. Even the likes of Rishabh Pant and Rohit Sharma haven’t shied away from attempting it. However, given the risk factor that comes along it, Chappell, in an indirect dig, heavily criticised the approach, questioning the ‘coach’ who gave the license to his batters.
“Regarding the supposedly all-important sweep shot, who is the insensitive coach that preaches that the reverse sweep is safer to play in Test cricket rather than employing decisive footwork? The danger of the reverse sweep in Tests was adequately revealed with the senseless dismissal of Yashasvi Jaiswal in the Mumbai Test,” Chappell wrote in his column for ESPNCricinfo.
“The reverse sweep in Tests can be a dangerous shot because it’s premeditated. Precise footwork on the other hand is tailored to the actual length of the delivery. The odd player is very good at all types of sweep shots, but the majority should rely heavily on decisive footwork to negate good spin bowling.”
Ian Chappell’s ‘illegal’ take
There is a fine line between the reverse-sweep and the highly-entertaining switch hit. In the reverse-sweep, only the position of the leg changes and the grip remains the same, whereas in the switch hit, the entire position changes – a right handed batter used a left-hander’s stance and vice-versa. The switch hit has sparked considerable debate in the past, with some even suggesting it should be banned. However, while the reverse-sweep is considered a more traditional shot, Chappell has argued that making excessive changes in posture during its execution should not be allowed.
“And while we’re on the reverse sweep – the shot where the batter changes the order of his hands or feet should be deemed illegal. A batter who employs these methods is doing so mainly to disrupt the field placings, which are set for an opposite-handed player,” the player-turned-commentator remarked,” Chappell, the former player-turned-commentator, remarked.
“The reverse sweep, when it’s adopted by a person who changes batting style in mid-delivery, might be spectacular and also skilful, but it’s not fair. Fairness should be a consideration in framing the laws and playing conditions.”
