Pujara, Nayar pinpoint reasons for India's T20I series defeat in England

Former India batter Cheteshwar Pujara and ex-assistant coach Abhishek Nayar have critically analysed Indias T20I series defeat to England, pointing to significant issues in middle-order batting, all-rounder contributions, and fielding, alongside a struggle against short-pitched deliveries.IMAGE: Indias Shreyas Iyer walks after losing his wicket, caught by Englands Sam Curran off the bowling of Liam Dawson in the fifth and final T20I against England in Southampton on Saturday. Photograph: Cat Goryn/Action Images via Reuters Key PointsCheteshwar Pujara attributes Indias T20I series loss to England to a lack of middle-order depth, shortage of quality all-rounders, and consistently poor fielding.Abhishek Nayar noted that Indian batters struggled to adapt to Englands strategy of consistently targeting them with short balls, calling it a wake-up call.Nayar defended captain Shreyas Iyer, stating he deserves time and ownership to build his team and should not be judged harshly after a difficult series.Both experts emphasised the need for clarity and direction for the Indian T20I side, particularly concerning spinner consistency and player development. Former India batter Cheteshwar Pujara has blamed Indias lack of middle-order depth, shortage of quality all-rounders and poor fielding for the teams forgettable T20I tour of England. India suffered their first-ever bilateral T20I series defeat to England after Harry Brook and Co. won the fifth and final match in Southampton by 56 runs, sealing a historic 4-0 series victory. India also lost the preceding series against Ireland 0-2 for the first time.England had batters at numbers five, six, seven and eight who contributed. When it comes to India, you had Tilak (Varma) at number five and Shivam Dube at number six, but they havent contributed as much as Englands middle order, Pujara said on JioHotstar. Yes, there is a failure at the top of the order, but India also doesnt have enough depth when it comes to their all-rounders, and that is a huge concern. The fielding has also been very poor.Fielding Woes and Batting ChallengesYou can accept that a young side doesnt perform well with the bat and the ball, but not fielding well is unacceptable. In the shorter format, fielding wins you games. You do make errors sometimes, but throughout the series, India has been very poor in the field, and thats a big concern.Former India assistant coach Abhishek Nayar said it a good wake-up call for the Indian batters as they consistently failed to deal with the short balls during the tour. This series has been an eye-opener for them. Even when they played in Ireland and now in England, very rarely do you remember in a T20 format where teams have constantly targeted you with short balls. Almost every batter has been targeted with that, he said.It just tells you that England were better prepared than the Indian team and most importantly, India failed to adapt. I think Australian conditions will be different. India has predominantly done well in Australia because the ball actually comes on. There is not a lot of spongy bounce like theyve felt in England.Captaincy and Future OutlookIts a good wake-up call. Its a good reflection of what this team needs to do to win abroad. But I think come the World Cup, youll find a more equipped team. And therell be a lot of batters wholl go back and start working on the short ball immediately.Nayar also backed new captain Shreyas Iyer, saying he deserves time and ownership. When you give someone the mantle of taking over from a champion side, you also want to give him the liberty of picking his side. The first time you become captain, you dont get the liberty of saying, This is where I want to take the team, he said.You first handle the team and then see what you need to do with it. Post these two series, hell have time to reflect, understand what he requires from this team, how he needs them to play and what he needs from the support staff. So, it will be harsh to say that Shreyas Iyers future is in jeopardy as a captain.Spinners Form and Team DirectionNayar, who is also the head coach of the Kolkata Knight Riders in IPL, said Iyer needs the liberty to decide the course of the T20I side. Its been a really hard series, and you can point fingers at Shreyas Iyer, but the more rational thing is to understand what he requires from this team.Give him the ownership of feeling like this is his team, like Harry Brook does right now, Ben Stokes did with the England Test team, or Rohit Sharma did for India when he was the captain, or Virat Kohli did, especially with the Test team.Then its a better place to judge him. Even Shubman Gill, when he first became the ODI captain, didnt win a few series first up. As you get into your own, you build confidence and the team you envision. Its still early days, theres no panic button, but there needs to be clarity as to where this team is going.On the Indian spinners poor form, Nayar said: Axar Patel has been very successful for India because he could drift the ball back in. But T20 is also about form. When you dont see that drift, theres something to do with his action or the amount of cricket hes played.Axar has bowled so many tough overs now that its easy for England to target him. He will come back to form shortly, but India have also not been very consistent with their spinners. Kuldeep Yadav picks up wickets but has been in and out, while Varun Chakaravarthy, with his injury, has had a rough couple of months with the Indian team.Sairaj Bahutule and the support staff need to work with these guys with the future in mind, not discard players. Tell players what you expect from them and where you want them to get better. When you lose, you need to create direction, not chaos.