Sai Sudharsan, the young Tamil Nadu batter, has been a mystery since his Test debut for India. His unconventional method of batting, especially against spinners, has generated controversy. Despite a relatively modest average of 23.33 from six Test innings, Sudharsan’s high control percentages raise some significant questions about his technique, ability to adapt, and potential for the future in Indian cricket.
Sai Sudharsan’s High Control Against Spin
Sai Sudharsan’s percentage of control, especially against spin, has been the highlight of his game. In India’s recent tour of England, Sudharsan’s control against spinners was only second to Shubman Gill and KL Rahul, two of the most consistent batsmen in the team.
Though he could manage just 140 runs off six innings, his skill at handling spin, particularly on turning tracks, left coaches and commentators impressed.
Sudharsan has found a way of getting most spinners length back foot, something that many batters today do not use to their advantage. This clever strategy has helped him to raise his control rate to a dizzying level, although he is also vulnerable to the odd delivery. While his strategy is capable of providing control, it can also create the possibility of unexpected failure.
The Eye Test: Recognizing the Talent Behind the Technique
In spite of his comparatively modest average, there has never been any doubt about Sai Sudharsan’s ability. His confidence in defending good-length balls played close to his body, and a good sense of how to play his game, make him tick the “eye test” for most selectors and coaches. This test is more predictive than conventional statistics, as evidenced by his Indian Test squad selection even though his first-class average hovers around below 40.
Yet, even after three Tests and a few promising beginnings, Sudharsan’s inability to translate those beginnings into meaningful scores continues to confound analysts. His method of play, if successful against some deliveries, is vulnerable to balls that fall outside the traditional lines and lengths, resulting in premature dismissals.
Sai Sudharsan’s Back-Foot Dominance Against Spin
One of the most impressiven aspects of Sudharsan’s batting is his use of the back foot to play against spin. Most batsmen like to play on the front foot when facing good-length balls from spinners, but Sudharsan tends to use the back foot to great advantage. This helps him adapt rapidly to change of lengths, turn, and bounce.
In his innings while batting against the West Indies in Delhi, Sudharsan showed the virtues of his back-foot game by playing boundaries through mid-off and extra-cover off turn. His potential to derive power from his wristy shots and placement made him a difficult batter to get rid of. His back-foot game has a tendency to cause him trouble as well when he is confronted with balls that do not turn in his favour.
The Debate: Is the Back-Foot Method Sustainable?
Recent Test match statistics in India show that batters tend to play off only 14% of the deliveries that spinners pitch between the 4-5 meter length (the fuller side of the spinners’ good length) with the back foot. Sai Sudharsan, however, has found a way to play close to 38% of these deliveries off the back foot, which is a wonderful achievement but also one fraught with danger.
His habit of playing back to deliveries which most would come forward to often results in technical failures. In Ahmedabad, for example, a ball from Roston Chase which Sudharsan attempted to pull from the back foot turned out to be fatal as he was given out LBW.
However, on the other hand, when Sudharsan performs this technique well, it also reflects his great technique. For instance, his 87-run innings against West Indies consisted mostly of his back-foot play, and he had not played a single wrong shot until a leading edge resulted in his getting out.
Sitanshu Kotak’s View of Sai Sudharsan’s Technique
India’s batting coach, Sitanshu Kotak, presented a detailed analysis of Sudharsan’s playing style. Kotak highlighted the individuality of Sudharsan’s back-foot stroke play, particularly against spin.
He conceded that the majority of batsmen like to use their front foot to defend fuller length balls, but Sudharsan’s back-foot game enables him to hit shots that very few other batsmen can. This style, Kotak explained, helps Sudharsan to power the ball with his wrists, hitting beautiful shots through mid-off and extra-cover.
However, Kotak also observed the downside: Sudharsan’s back-foot stroke play can frequently leave him exposed to deliveries that are not short enough to warrant playing a back-foot shot.
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In Kotak’s view, the solution is to incorporate far more front-foot stroke play, especially against deliveries that are outside off stump. This would limit the risk of being dismissed LBW and make him better prepared for a variation of deliveries.
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