Gavaskar: Bowlers, not the pitch, at fault after India lose fourth T20I in Hyderabad

Sunil Gavaskar said bowlers were to blame rather than the surface after India were beaten by the West Indies by 24 runs in the fourth T20I in Hyderabad on October 14, 2026; he made the remarks while discussing the match on JioHotstar.

India head coach Gautam Gambhir had reiterated his preference for pitches that offer a better contest between bat and ball, while the relaid surface at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium was reported to offer occasional hold and noticeable bounce during the game.

Gavaskar pointed to a string of full tosses and poorly pitched deliveries from India during the contest, noting that even the West Indies bowlers erred while the partnership between Tilak Varma and Nitish Kumar Reddy was developing. “Even the West Indies bowlers made quite a few errors while the partnership between Tilak Varma and Nitish was developing; they bowled too many full tosses. We often talk about pitches and blame them, claiming they offer no assistance to the bowlers. But if you bowl full tosses, the pitch isn't to blame,” Gavaskar said.

He urged bowlers to hit the deck to exploit available conditions rather than gifting batters scoring opportunities with full tosses or deliveries landing halfway down the pitch. “Only later, when they bowled the right length or delivered yorkers, did they find success,” he added.

The West Indies amassed 247 for three with Shai Hope leading the innings, and India were unable to maintain consistent control with the ball. Prince Yadav was singled out as an exception among the Indian bowlers, while Mayank Yadav and Arshdeep Singh each conceded 52 runs.

India captain Shreyas Iyer accepted that poor execution with the ball put his side under pressure and credited the visitors for executing their plans more effectively. “It all started with bowling. We didn't execute our line and lengths well and, at the end of the day, when you're chasing 250, you have to go about it in a certain pattern,” Iyer said. “I liked our approach during the chase, but we were unfortunate that we couldn't execute our plans with the ball, and that's where we fell a bit short,” he added.

India finished at 223 for nine in 19.3 overs, with Arshdeep retiring hurt, as the West Indies levelled the five-match series 2-2; the two teams will meet in the series decider at Bengaluru's M Chinnaswamy Stadium on Saturday, with India's bowling execution likely to come under renewed scrutiny.