We all saw Prithvi Shaw misjudging the two deliveries that got him out in a similar way. Before he got out during the first inning of India’s batting in the first test match, Ricky Ponting, the coach for Delhi Capitals said in a commentary that Prithvi leaves a big bat-pad gap while defending the ball and that’s how a bowler can get him out. And on the very next ball, we saw Starc taking Prithvi’s wicket. It is not just his weakness that he needs to work on. During the first test match against Australia, Prithvi even dropped a catch that was a critical yet simple one which made Virat Kohli very angry.
Maybe it was Australia’s best bowling performance, but if Prithvi had given a solid defensive start along with Mayank to India as an opener, maybe the scenes would have been different. Prithvi still has a lot of time to work on his weaknesses and come back stronger. But for now, he lacks maturity and he needs to understand how to build an inning by taking impossible singles and pushing for two if given a chance. He has scored a test century but that is against West Indies who lack a brilliant pacer like Kagiso Rabada, Jofra Archer or Mitchel Starc.
Prithvi’s performance in IPL wasn’t satisfactory as well. More importantly, when Prithvi is given a chance, able players like Shubhman Gill or KL Rahul sit on the bench. That gives another disadvantage to team India. For the next test match against Australia, India should give rest to Prithvi Shaw and allow him to work on his weaknesses. Only then he can become a better test match player.