IPL Blamed For India’s Disastrous T20I Campaign In England

IPL blamed for India's defeats [Source: AFP]

Team India, under the leadership of new captain Shreyas Iyer, succumbed to a 56-run defeat against England in Southampton in the fifth T20I of their series. The outcome also handed India a demoralizing 0-4 series defeat.

Just a couple of weeks ago, the very same Indian cricket team also suffered a 0-2 humiliation in Ireland, and has now lost six matches in a row.

Interestingly, former Indian cricketer and expert commentator Sanju Manjrekar believes that high-scoring Indian Premier League (IPL) matches is one of the primary reasons behind national team’s recent setbacks. 

IPL putting “heavy makeup” on India batters, believes Manjrekar

Indian cricket commentator Sanjay Manjrekar believes that IPL success gives an inflated picture of a batter’s ability, and cautioned the selectors to look beyond the performances in the league of any player while selecting national squads.

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Taking to X account, the cricketer-turned-commentator wrote “The easy thing would be is to hold players responsible for this overseas T20 setback. The right thing would be is to hold those responsible who have made IPL such, that it puts a heavy make up on Indian batters.”

Sanjay Manjrekar even stated that many of India’s upcoming T20I assignments will be overseas affairs, where pitches will not be as batting friendly like they have been in recent IPL seasons.

He added “Challenge is for the selectors to imagine Indian batters without the heavy IPL make up on & pick only those for India. A lot of T20 cricket will be overseas now. The home fun run is over.”

Has IPL impacted India’s batting in overseas ventures?

While Sanjay Manjrekar raised valid points in his assessment, the Indian cricket team remained a formidable force in T20I cricket regardless of playing conditions, just up until a couple of weeks ago.

Moreover, several IPL graduate batters played a significant hand in India’s dominance, with the likes of Abhishek Sharma, Sanju Samson, Hardik Pandya among others firing on all cylinders. 

The series defeats in Ireland and England dented India’s unbeaten series streak, one which commenced in August 2023 after returning from the West Indies. Since then, the ‘Men in Blue’ won 16 series in a row, which included a couple of T20 World Cup titles and an Asia Cup trophy, and even series victories in South Africa and Australia.

The Indian team also maintained its number one ICC T20I men’s team ranking for more than four years, before the losing the same to England with their recent loss in Southampton. 

Much to ponder for Shreyas Iyer-led India going ahead

Under the leadership of Suryakumar Yadav, Team India won the 2026 ICC Men’s T20 World Cup at home earlier this year. However, Suryakumar’s lackluster returns with the bat prompted the BCCI to remove him from the national side.

Appointing Shreyas Iyer as new captain, the ‘Men in Blue’ suffered a 0-2 drubbing in Ireland, and another 0-4 humiliation in England to concede two whitewashes in a row. 

India's dismal run in Ireland and England may not conclusively prove Sanjay Manjrekar’s theory, but it has certainly reignited the debate over whether IPL performances are being given too much importance while assessing batters for challenging overseas conditions.

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