The former India cricketer also backed Tilak Varma, who has been going through a lean patch with the bat
Published: July 12, 2026, 1:44 PM IST
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https://www.india.com/sports/india-needs-to-improve-fielding-and-find-t20-specialists-says-parthiv-patel-after-men-in-blues-series-defeat-in-england-8471888/
India’s captain Shreyas Iyer and Ishan Kishan running between the wickets during the fifth T20 International between India and England in the India tour of England 2026 at The Rose Bowl in Southampton, England, on Saturday, July 11, 2026. (Photo: IANS)
India’s recent struggles in T20 Internationals have raised a few concerns after consecutive series defeats to Ireland and England. Speaking on JioStar’s Googlies, former India wicketkeeper Parthiv Patel shared his thoughts on the areas where the team needs to improve, while also backing Tilak Varma to return to form.
Patel admitted that India’s 2-0 series defeat to Ireland came as a surprise but felt the performances did not deserve better results.
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“The result was a bit surprising and shocking. You can’t expect to beat Ireland after playing poor cricket,” Patel said.
According to him, India’s biggest problem over the last couple of years has been fielding. He pointed out that poor catching has affected not only the men’s team but also the women’s and junior teams.
“The most alarming aspect of Indian cricket has been fielding,” Patel said. “Even in the Ireland series, had those two or three catches been taken in the first game, they wouldn’t have scored over 180. The same thing happened in the second game.”
He believes India are letting games slip because of dropped chances at important moments and stressed that improving fielding should be one of the team’s top priorities going forward.
Patel also spoke about India’s bowling options in the shortest format. He questioned why the team continues to depend on senior pacers instead of identifying bowlers who specialise in T20 cricket.
“Just as we have T20 specialists in batting, why don’t we look for the same in bowling?” Patel said. “We always think Bumrah will come back and do the job. Then we keep going back to the likes of Prasidh Krishna. We also have bowlers like Prince Yadav and Mohsin Khan, so we need to start looking at T20 specialist bowlers as well.”
The former India cricketer also backed Tilak Varma, who has been going through a lean patch with the bat. Patel said India’s current batting combination, which features several left-handers, may not be the ideal balance in the long run.
“I’m just hoping we don’t see another vice-captain get dropped,” Patel said. “If six of your top seven batters are left-handers, that batting order won’t work. Changes have to be made somewhere. That’s why Tilak Varma needs to score runs.”
Patel feels India need to improve both their fielding standards and team balance if they want better results in T20 cricket.
