‘There was nothing wrong’: Sunil Gavaskar shuts down criticism of Gautam Gambhir’s decision to bat Axar Patel at No.5

Shubman Gill, Gautam Gambhir Legendary Indian batsman Sunil Gavaskar has backed the team management’s decision to promote Axar Patel ahead of KL Rahul in the second ODI against New Zealand, explaining the tactical thinking behind the move despite the all-rounder’s failure with the bat.Chasing a modest target of 135 at the Hnry Stadium in Wellington, India found themselves in early trouble against a disciplined New Zealand attack. After losing Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma, the visitors slipped to 39/3. Axar was then sent in at No. 5 ahead of Rahul but could only manage seven runs before falling, leaving India struggling at 47/4.Head coach Gautam Gambhir and captain Gill’s decision to move Axar up the order drew criticism from fans and pundits. However, Gavaskar felt that there was sound reasoning behind the move, particularly the benefit of disrupting the plans of the bowling attack by introducing left-handed batting.“The bowlers have a bit of trouble when a left-handed batsman comes in because you have to change the line and the length that you would have for a right-hander. When you try to do that, your line can change slightly to a right-hander, which creates more chances of a run,” explained Gavaskar, speaking on the Sony Sports Network after the match.The former Indian captain also pointed out that such tactical decisions should not be judged only by their outcome as they can yield different results on different occasions.“There was nothing wrong with that thought process. If Axar had scored runs, you would have said how good the captaincy was. Sometimes moves like that work and sometimes they don’t and it didn’t work this time. You also knew there was a solid player like Rahul after him. That’s why you experiment sometimes,” he added.The promotion of Axar was not a completely unfamiliar move for India. The left-hander has previously been entrusted with the higher batting position in important matches, most notably during the 2024 T20 World Cup final when he forged a crucial partnership with Virat Kohli.He also occupied the 5th position ahead of Rahul during India’s 2025 Champions Trophy winning campaign.But in Wellington, it was Rahul who eventually took charge of keeping India’s chase on track. After coming in after Axar’s dismissal, he combined with Shreyas Iyer, who contributed 30 off 46 deliveries, to steady the innings.Rahul was cautious early on, making 18 runs in his first 20 deliveries before finding opportunities to accelerate. He remained unbeaten on 26 when rain stopped play, with India at 113/7 after 26 overs.When play was suspended, India were four runs short of DLS’s even score of 109, giving the visitors a four-wicket win and a 2-0 lead in the five-match series.The win was secured by an impressive performance from India’s young pace attack. Gurnoor Brar took career-best figures of 4/30 while Auqib Nabi and Anshul Kamboj took two wickets each to dismiss New Zealand for 134 in 41 overs.Daryl Mitchell top scored for the hosts with 55 but New Zealand’s total proved insufficient as India secured another DLS win in the series.