India’s assistant coach Ryan ten Doeschate has attributed the recent struggles of the Indian cricket team against spin bowling to a significant shift in their strategic mindset. He opines that the team’s increased focus on excelling against high-quality fast bowling, especially in overseas conditions, might have inadvertently caused this disparity. Once renowned for their expertise against spin, the Indian side found themselves embarrassed by spin bowlers, losing a staggering 27 wickets in the recent One Day International (ODI) series against Sri Lanka. Ten Doeschate is determined to address and rectify this issue.
“The Indian mindset has become so driven to do well overseas that the focus has moved away from what was once their strength—playing spin,” ten Doeschate remarked during an interview with TalkSport Cricket. He expressed that the team’s current predicament is primarily due to their intense desire to perform under challenging conditions abroad, particularly in Australia and England. This focus has seemingly led to a decline in the proficiency against spin, which was historically a formidable strength of Indian cricket. Ten Doeschate is eager to work toward reinstating this dominance.
“[We] were undone in Sri Lanka, and I think the mindset of the Indians has been such that they are so driven to do well overseas. I think the focus has moved to doing well in Australia and doing well in England, and we’ve kind of let playing spin, which was always the strength of the Indian team, fall back a little bit. So that’s one thing I’m looking forward to, helping get to that position where Indians are the best players of spin in the world again,” he added.
Ryan ten Doeschate is one of three assistant coaches who will be assisting under the new head coach, Gautam Gambhir. While former South African fast bowler Morne Morkel is anticipated to play a crucial role in developing the team’s bowling capabilities, the responsibility for improving the batting performance is to be shared between Abhishek Nayar and ten Doeschate. The Dutch assistant coach delineated that their approach would not be overly technical but would instead focus on psychological aspects of the game.
“I don’t think much of what we’re going to bring is technical knowledge to these guys,” ten Doeschate said. “It’s more about mindsets, situational awareness, how we think they can control certain phases of the game. It’s about throwing ideas out there, de-briefing and keeping the mental space really good.
. That’s going to be really important.”
The new coaching regime arrives at a pivotal moment for the Indian team, who have recently secured the T20 World Cup title. Looking ahead, India has significant challenges, including competing for the World Test Championship (WTC) and the Champions Trophy. Ten Doeschate voiced his mixed feelings about this exciting yet daunting journey.
“It’s exciting and kind of daunting at the same time,” he said. “In terms of what we’re looking forward to, qualifying for the WTC final. There’s a great opportunity with 10 Tests left, five in India [over the next couple of months] and then going to Australia [for five more at the end of 2024] is going to be great.”
He elaborated further on the medium-term goals, particularly the Champions Trophy, emphasizing the complexities of preparing the team with only three ODIs left in the preparation phase. Switching between formats adds to the challenge, but the team is extremely eager to seize these opportunities and triumph.
“Then in the medium term there’s the Champions Trophy. With only three ODIs left in the prep phase, it’s going to be really challenging to switch between the formats and get the team ready for that, which again is something they’re desperate to win.”
Looking further ahead, the new assistant coach discussed the upcoming tour to England in the summer of 2025 and the preparation for the 2026 T20 World Cup. He underlined the uniqueness of coming into a team that has just been victorious in the World Cup and the exhilarating challenges that await in the next 18 months, a period teeming with high-profile series.
“Then in the next [WTC] cycle, the tour to England [summer of 2025] is going to be fantastic and then prepping the team for the [2026] T20 World Cup. In terms of timing, it’s quite difficult to walk into a team that’s just come back with the World Cup, but in terms of what’s ahead for the next 18 months, it’s mouth-watering as a coach. It’s all the series you want to be involved in and all the challenges you want to come up against.”
Ten Doeschate’s clear message encapsulates his passion and commitment to rejuvenating India’s prowess against spin bowling, ensuring that the team regains its lost forte while maintaining its newly acquired skills against formidable fast bowlers.