New Delhi, December 11 Former South Africa captain AB de Villiers has stated that he agrees to some extent with India head coach Gautam Gambhir regarding the view that the ODI batting order is given more importance than necessary, but he emphasized the need to maintain a balance between flexibility in the team and the core roles of the players. Gambhir had remarked that he felt the batting order in the ODI format is overrated following India's 2-1 victory in the ODI series against South Africa.
Speaking on his YouTube channel, de Villiers mentioned that while he agrees with the Indian coach to some extent and personally liked changing the order of batters in ODIs, it remains a delicate matter because one cannot tamper too much with the roles of the players. As per agency report, he explained that a lineup typically involves the top three, the batters at numbers four to six, and then the lower order. He described this structure as being like three sections where a team can indeed be creative. He noted that making changes to form right and left-hand combinations and adjusting according to specific match situations is correct.
The former cricketer also commented on the current form of the Indian team after they won the first T20 International against South Africa, marking their 27th win in 31 matches. De Villiers praised the Indian team significantly, terming their performance, especially in the T20 format, as incredible. He pointed out that T20 is the most volatile of the three formats, and maintaining consistency in performance implies that the team is moving in the right direction. He attributed this sustained success to the depth of Indian cricket.
