"Hero worshipping.." Sanjay Manjrekar has his say on India's slump in test cricket

Sanjay Manjrekar talked about India’s recent slump in the longest format of the game.

The Indian Cricket Team is going through a tough phase in test cricket. Once favourites to qualify for the ICC World Test Championship (WTC) 2023-25 final, the Asian giants hit an unprecedented low over the last three months of 2024, resulting in them not qualifying for the final of the tournament for the first time.

India suffered their first-ever home test series whitewash (a series with three or more games) against New Zealand, before losing the Border-Gavaskar Trophy 2024-25 to Australia by a margin of 1-3.

One of the primary reasons behind India’s poor performance was the lack of form of senior players – Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli – who both struggled to find consistency with the bat. The iconic duo averaged just 24 in test cricket in 2024.

Former Indian batsman Sanjay Manjrekar has now shared his thoughts on India’s poor test form.

Sanjay Manjrekar on India’s slump in test cricket

In his column for Hindustan Times, Manjrekar described India’s recent test form as a “generational slump,” noting that while such phases are inevitable for every team, it impact India the most.

He wrote, “This ‘generational slump’ is inevitable for all teams. It’s what we know as the transition phase and among the best teams in the world, I believe it affects India the most,“

The 59-year-old pinpointed “hero worshipping” of iconic players as the main reason behind India’s poor form. He also drew a comparison between India’s recent slump and the one they experienced in 2011/12 under MS Dhoni’s leadership.

He added, “The one foremost reason behind this is the icon culture we have in India and the hero worship of certain players. Be it 2011-12 or now, it’s the same scenario that gets played out — iconic players featuring prominently doing the opposite of what they did their entire careers, thereby dragging the team down with their diminished performances,“

Sanjay further mentioned that India is an emotional country, where people take emotional decisions. He noted that selectors often hesitate to make tough selection decisions, waiting for iconic players to retire on their own, fearing public backlash.

He wrote, “Thing is, when it comes to the big players, we as a country are just not able to stay rational. Emotions run high and those in positions to take decisions on these players are influenced by this climate.“

“Cricketing logic goes out of the window and then the selectors hope the player leaves on his own so that they don’t look like the villains who brutally ended the career of a great who millions of fans worship. They just fear the backlash,“

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