Coach Fletcher feels India need good fortune to stage a comeback
Coach Fletcher feels India need good fortune to stage a comeback
Duncan Fletcher, the coach, has now lost six Tests in a row in Australia. The nightmare began in 2006-07 when his English side was whitewashed. It's not looking good for the Zimbabwean on his return Down Under as India coach. He was put in the hot seat in the media briefing here at the Sydney Cricket Ground (SCG) yesterday after his side had another forgettable outing.
Tough time: Zaheer Khan is surprised by Ben Hilfenhaus on Day One
of the SCG Test. Pic/Getty Images
Fletcher felt that his team needed a bit of fortune to stage a comeback. "The mood in the change room has been very, very good. All the players have worked very hard at the nets. They are putting in the effort, they are trying their best. "Sometimes in cricket, we need a little bit of good fortune. If you see Sachin today (his dismissal), how many times do you play on from that width? Normally, he would have put that through covers for four. Sometimes, luck goes against you. Sometimes, it runs with you," Fletcher told reporters after Australia drew stumps on 116-3 yesterday.
Duncan Fletcher
Fletcher was seen spending time with struggling opener Gautam Gambhir on Sunday. When asked if he was worried about Gambhir's persisting woes (dismissed for a three-ball duck), Fletcher said: "We have been working on him to get more positive. That's what's crucial with Gautam.
"We are working on the mental side of it, where we feel he has been quite tentative and pushing at balls instead of going out there and batting like he should. "We have seen Gautam in the past. He is an attacking batter. We are trying to get him to be a lot more positive in his approach. Today, the ball he got (from James Pattinson), it would have been difficult to leave that, pitching on leg stump, going across you. It probably would have got a few left-handers out so early in an innings," Fletcher said.
Fletcher denied claims that Tendulkar's elusive milestone of hundred international tons was putting pressure on the team. "I don't think it does. Everybody supports Sachin. He is a great batter, everyone knows that. It's not really putting pressure on the rest on the side. "You (the media) have got to speak to Sachin if he is putting pressure on himself. Only he can answer that. From the team's point of view, they don't really worry about it," he said.
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