India have won all their matches in their Champions Trophy 2025 campaign so far. The team reached the semi-finals while remaining unbeaten in the group stage and defeated world champions Australia in the last four. India's great cricketer Sunil Gavaskar has said that despite consistent wins, there are many areas where the team can still improve. He said that India has stopped runs in the middle overs but has not been able to take many wickets. He also pointed out the lack of a big partnership for the opening wicket. He also demanded more wickets from the fast bowlers with the new ball in the first 10 overs.

'India will have to do better in these areas'

Gavaskar told India Today, 'When you look at the Indian openers, they have not given the Indian team the start that was expected of them. I think there is a shortcoming in this. Even with the new ball, you would like to take as many wickets as possible in the first 10 overs. You want to take two or three wickets. This is also not happening. We did not get wickets in the middle overs, even though the runs were stopping. If we improve in these areas, then there is a better chance of going to the final and winning.'

'There should be no change in the playing-11'

Gavaskar also believes that India should not make any changes to their playing XI in the final and should stick to the formula of playing four spinners. He said that the inclusion of both Varun Chakravarthy and Kuldeep Yadav has strengthened India's attack and they should not tamper with the winning combination. He said, 'I think there will be four spinners. Kuldeep's inclusion has shown how effective he can be.'

'Rohit should bat for a long time'

Gavaskar advised Rohit to bat for a long time instead of focusing on providing a quick start to the team. After India's victory over Australia in the Champions Trophy 2025 semi-final, head coach Gautam Gambhir defended Rohit's approach and said that the star batsman is judged on his impact and not on his numbers. Gavaskar, however, was not impressed by the comment and said that if a batsman like Rohit stays at the crease for 25-30 overs, he will take the game away from the opponents and this should also be incorporated into one's gameplay.

'Rohit did not get much success'

He said, 'This is an approach that he has been following for the last two years. It started with the World Cup in India and he has stuck to this formula. He has had some success, although perhaps not as much as expected. He is an incredibly talented player who has a variety of shots that many others in the game do not have.' Gavaskar said, 'If Rohit bats even for 25 overs, India will be around 180-200. Imagine if they have lost only a few wickets till then. Just think what he can do! He can take India's score to 350 or beyond.' Gavaskar said that Rohit should not be happy with 25-30 runs and his impact for his team should be much more.

'Rohit should bat for 25-30 overs'

He said, 'He also needs to consider this. It is one thing to go out on the field and play aggressively, but there should be discretion somewhere to give yourself a chance to bat for 25-30 overs. If he does this, he will take the game away from the opposition team. This kind of impact is match-winning. I want to know that as a batsman, are you happy to score 25-30 runs? You should not be! So I would say this to him, your impact on the team will be even more if you bat for 25 overs instead of just seven, eight or nine overs.'

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