What They Said About

'A lot of soul-searching needs to be done'

After India's seventh consecutive overseas Test defeat, throats were cleared for some angry shouting

"Dhoni's batting is a concern, he is low in confidence and it is affecting his captaincy but we should not take any drastic step."  •  Getty Images

"Dhoni's batting is a concern, he is low in confidence and it is affecting his captaincy but we should not take any drastic step."  •  Getty Images

"I think a lot of soul-searching needs to be done. We need to look at first-class cricket structure, pitches that we play, scheduling of matches, it has to be a really long hard look at everything."
Sunil Gavaskar on the way ahead
"The last time India was in Perth was the start of India's rise to the No. 1 ranking. This time we have lost the last seven away games. In the first meeting I attended as captain of India, the first question I asked was do we have a transition plan for all the senior players? The answer then was: yes we have ready replacements."
Anil Kumble on how the plan to bring in youngsters never materialised
"There are many reasons for Indian team's disappointing performance in Australia. Some players are ageing and they have been so good for over a period of time but at 39 they are no longer young for Test cricket."
Sourav Ganguly speaks of one contributing factor to India's loss
"I think MS Dhoni has a habit of staying back and waiting for things to happen. I think we need to look for a new captain for Test matches."
Maninder Singh, the former India spinner, says changes need to be made at the very top
"When Tendulkar and Dravid and those boys retire in a couple of years, where is Indian cricket going to be. Are the youngsters coming through?"
Australian opener David Warner is perhaps mindful of Australia's badly handled transition
"The selectors need to choose players carefully keeping in mind the players who can adjust to conditions, can change their game according to the pace and bounce outside even if they haven't scored enough runs in domestic cricket. We need to progress step by step. Dhoni's batting is a concern, he is low in confidence and it is affecting his captaincy but we should not take any drastic step."
Sanjay Manjrekar warns against sweeping changes
"India will prob have one of those "reviews". These are their best players but they can't handle pace. Solution: pitches at home."
Former England captain and current commentator David Lloyd has some advice for Indian batsmen
"They (BCCI) are doing extremely well when it comes to making money and controlling world cricket. But what is the use if your team fails to win matches abroad?"
Kapil Dev goes after the Indian board
"Sachin is getting out to balls frequently coming back into him. Laxman and Sehwag are giving catches in the slip cordon regularly and even Dravid is getting bowled repeatedly. All sad signs of diminishing class of these great players."
Former India captain Nari Contractor thinks the time is up for India's Big Three
"Pre-IPL and under Ganguly with a similar team India won in England and drew in Aussie. Had plenty of fight back then! Where has it gone?"
Thought-provoking question tweeted by former England captain Michael Vaughan
"I am saying this with a heavy heart, but once the IPL comes around in April, every Test defeat will be forgotten."
Could that be a silver lining or just more gloomy predictions from Bishan Bedi?
"I don't think the Aussies bowling attack was unplayable as was the case in the past. I don't think someone like Peter Siddle is like that. They are essentially length bowlers. In a way, we let the Australian bowlers come on top of us which I don't feel they deserve to be."
Farokh Engineer, the former India keeper, isn't giving credit to the Australian bowlers for inflicting the massive defeats
"Indian cricket's problem is not much shortage of talent as self-delusion. Being the richest in the world is not necessarily synonymous with the best. Building a truly great team needs long-term vision, rigorous planning, strong leadership and some luck with the right talent coming together at the same time."
Journalist Ayaz Memon on India's problems