"South Africa demolished us with two spinners" - Ex-Indian cricketer's huge claim on team combination ahead of IND vs SA 2025 2nd Test

Former cricketer Mohammad Kaif has come up with a massive statement about Team India's combination in the first Test ahead of the second match against South Africa, beginning on November 22 in Guwahati. Kaif underlined that India didn't need to play four spinners in Kolkata as South Africa demonstrated how effective only two can be.

The Indian team played four spinners - Kuldeep Yadav, Axar Patel, Washington Sundar, and Ravindra Jadeja - on a turning track in Kolkata. Although all four managed to keep a lid on run-scoring, Simon Harmer and Keshav Maharaj outbowled India to win a low-scoring contest for South Africa. Harmer took eight wickets in the match to fashion a 30-run victory for the Proteas.

Speaking in the latest video on his YouTube channel 'Mohammad Kaif,' the 44-year-old opined that not playing B Sai Sudharsan in the series-opener was a wrong decision. Reports suggest that the southpaw is likely to return to the playing XI for the second Test. Kaif reckoned that a team needs an extra batter instead of a bowler on an excessively turning track, elaborating:

"The earlier decision was a wrong one. You could’ve made the changes to the squad earlier. Not playing Sai Sudharsan in the first Test was a mistake. Now they are regretting not successfully chasing down the modest total and got stuck on a turning track. Sai Sudharsan comes from Chennai, so he plays spin well. He has also been in form, so he should keep playing. Four spinners are not needed in the side. When the pitch is completely flat and assisting batters, you play an extra bowler. But an extra bowler is not required on a turning track." "South Africa demolished us with two spinners. Two good spinners were enough and the pitch did the rest. There is no limitation on overs either. I have played alongside players like Harbhajan Singh and Anil Kumble, they used to bowl until evening. Bowling longer spells also gives bowlers an idea about what lengths to bowl and how the batters are approaching it," he added.

Kaif also pointed out that bowlers need extended spells in Test matches, which is hard for a captain when a team has six bowlers. He said:

"Jasprit Bumrah didn’t get a wicket for about half an hour in the last Test. He revealed that he was then understanding how the pitch was behaving. Then he understood what lengths to bowl, he went round the wicket and castled Ryan Rickelton. So, bowlers need extended spells to figure out the pitch and batters. If you play six bowlers, it’s difficult to give longer spells to a particular bowler. You can become slightly confused. Test match is a game of patience, so bowlers must be given extended spells and captain must wait for batters to make a mistake. So, six bowlers are required only on flat tracks."

Although Sundar was picked as the fourth spinner, he hardly bowled. The 26-year-old sent down only one over in the first innings and didn't bowl in the second. Nevertheless, he showed promise after being promoted to No. 3, top-scoring for India with 31 in the second innings.

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"I don’t believe in left-right combination for Test matches" - Mohammad Kaif on Team India's line-up for Guwahati Test

Mohammad Kaif/ (Image Credits: Getty)

In the same video, Kaif claimed that Axar shouldn't have played in Kolkata and that Sai Sudharsan needs to be included in India's line-up for the next match. The former batter believes Sudharsan will excel if given an opportunity, given he has been playing domestic cricket.

"Axar Patel shouldn’t have played the previous game because he hasn’t been playing Test matches continuously. Hence, Sai Sudharsan should have played instead and it would’ve been a good team. Five bowlers, three spinners, two pacers and the batting unit extends to eight, nine. It’s time to cover up and as reports say, Sai Sudharsan and Reddy will play. There is also a requirement of a right-hander. I don’t believe in left-right combination for Test matches. In Tests, all you require is skilled players, whether it’s left-hander or right. If Sai Sudharsan is a good player of spin, he will score runs, whether he is a right-hander or left," Kaif said. "He has played in IPL and Ranji Trophy, where he faced all kinds of bowlers. Players who have scored runs in the domestic circuit need to be backed, so does the new players. Since Sai Sudharsan plays spin well, he can slot in at number three. South Africa have both left and right-arm spinners, so they know who to bring against which batter," he added.

India must level the series in Guwahati to avoid another home series loss.

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Edited by Parag Jain