Legendary Australian spinner Shane Warne took a dig at some of the Indian players for lack of commitment towards Test cricket and advised the BCCI to identify its priorities.
"At times the India players have not shown it means the world to play Test cricket. Certain individuals have taken the easy option to miss a Test match when they are not 100 per cent. They have just picked and chosen when to play for their country, which has upset balance and spirit of the team. Those players know who they are," Warne said.
"The IPL and one-day cricket has a role to play but, if India lead the charge to make Test cricket the priority for all players, that will help everyone around the world.”
"The IPL is a wonderful tournament and there should be a four-week window around April-May when everyone is available to play in it. But if India committed to Test cricket a lot more, other boards would be happy to let their players appear in the IPL. It is about give and take," he added a day after India suffered a 0-4 whitewash at the hands of England, their worst series in the Old Blighty since 1959.
Warne said when Australia were at their best they could have picked two or three teams, but India, who came into the high-profile series as the numero uno side in the longer format, struggled to pick one.”
"India have had trouble with picking one side for this series. After this humiliating whitewash they need to go away and identify their priorities. The BCCI has a responsibility to international cricket to make sure everyone wants to play Test cricket," Warne wrote in the `Daily Telegraph`.
"Indian players did not play as a team. I am not trying to blame anybody but I think they played too much cricket. Within four days of winning the World Cup you play IPL. They then travel to West Indies for a tour and then from there to England. I think our players were going through the motion more than their love for the game", Kapil said.
Former Test opener Arun Lal was scathing in his attack on Mahendra Singh Dhoni and his men and said that the country cannot rely on the 35-plus cricketers for long.
"England were decidedly far better side in the series, there is no doubt about it. It did not matter if India had some of the top cricketers in the world but under the conditions England were way way ahead," Lal said.
"We need to bring in new blood. You cannot go on with 35 or 38-year-olds till eternity. There might be slowing down of the reflexes, weakening of eyesight etc. So we need to infuse new talent," Lal said.
Legendary batsman and former captain Sunil Gavaskar said he was surprised at the manner the Indian team capitulated in the four-match Test series.
"It was very disappointing. Everybody thought it would be a great series, but it was an abject surrender. This was not the way a number one team plays. They normally lose by close margins, not like this," Gavaskar said.
"Maybe the approach was wrong and the attitude wasn`t there," he added.
Former all-rounder Ravi Shastri urged the BCCI to put in place tough guidelines to revive Indian cricket.
"It was a combination of a lot of factors - injuries, lack of form. But this is a rude wake-up call," Shastri said.
"Tough guidelines should be in place, and we should have a core group of players for all three formats of the game. You might not always have desirable stories but that`s the way forward. That way, Indian cricket could get back on track in 6-8 months." he said.
PTI
