BCCI Secretary Devajit Saikia. Image Credits: AFP
The road towards next year’s 2027 ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup seems to intensify with each passing week. Several Indian cricketers, including senior men, are already in race to confirm their places in the national side for the showpiece event in South Africa, Zimbabwe and Namibia.
For Sunil Gavaskar, however, there is another way for Team India players to prepare themselves for the multi-nation tournament, as well as for the subsequent 2028 ICC Men’s T20 World Cup in Australia and New Zealand.
The former Indian cricketer recently urged the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) to change the dimensions of boundaries in cricket grounds across the country, in a bid to get players accustomed to large boundaries of South Africa and Australia.
Gavaskar wants BCCI to increase boundary size for World Cup prep
While writing in his Sportstar column, India’s all-time great Sunil Gavaskar urged the BCCI to increase boundary sizes in Indian cricket grounds in a bid to prepare players for the 2027 ICC Cricket World Cup in South Africa, Zimbabwe and Namibia next year.
The cricketer-turned-commentator stated that the BCCI should utilize the space behind LED advertising boards to increase the boundary sizes.
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He wrote “It’s absolutely imperative, when the new Indian season begins, to get the boundary sizes increased so that our batters get used to that before the World Cup next year. At virtually every ground, there is plenty of space for people to walk behind the LED advertising boards, so it tells you that if this space is utilized, the boundary size will automatically increase.”
Compatible to Sunil Gavaskar’s claims, several Indian stadiums do have shorter boundaries that tend to cater high-scoring games in white-ball cricket.
The trend has been particularly evident in the last couple of IPL seasons, where several matches turned into run-fests, with teams regularly breaching the 200 and even 250-run mark on grounds featuring relatively shorter boundaries.
Sunil Gavaskar issues ODI advice for batters
It is worth noting that the Indian cricket team holds one of the most formidable batting line-ups in modern-day T20I cricket. India’s full-throttled approach even fetched them the 2026 ICC T20 World Cup at home earlier this year.
However, Sunil Gavaskar believes that Team India needs to have a different approach in a bid to find similar success in ODIs.
In light of the 2027 ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup next year, Gavaskar added “It’s necessary to play smart cricket. So, figure out the bowler who doesn’t need to be counter-attacked. Then target the bowlers against whom you can make up for the quiet over from the better bowler. No team in the world has five top bowlers, and there will always be eight to 12 overs in a T20 game where the runs can be looted. Similarly, in the 50-over format, a little patience won’t hurt even if the team is chasing a big score like 380-plus.”
When Sanjay Manjrekar called out shorter Indian boundaries
Before Sunil Gavaskar, another former Indian cricketer indirectly called out the BCCI for making smaller boundaries in Indian venues, especially in IPL matches.
During the IPL 2026 season, former batter Sanjay Manjrekar stated that boundaries need to be longer in Indian grounds, and specifically singled out the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai for having shorter boundaries.
With Sunil Gavaskar and Manjrekar both offering their suggestions for India's preparation, the ‘Men in Blue’ are now set to embark on a crucial journey towards the 2027 ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup through a packed ODI calendar over the next one year.
The Indian cricket team recently lost its three-match ODI rubber in England by a 1-2 margin.
Later this year, Team India is scheduled to host West Indies and Sri Lanka for six ODI matches combined, and will also tour New Zealand to play a five-match series. A couple of months before the 2027 World Cup, India will also compete in the 50-overs 2027 Asia Cup.
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