‘Fast bowlers bowling with one hand tied’: Sunil Gavaskar sounds alarm over T20 imbalance
Cricket legend Sunil Gavaskar is concerned about the game's increasing tilt towards batters, especially in T20s. He highlights shorter boundaries, fielding restrictions, and powerful bats as key issues. Gavaskar specifically advocates for a more lenient wide bouncer rule, arguing bowlers are unfairly penalized.
He urges the ICC Cricket Committee to consider measures to restore balance for the bowling fraternity.
The balance between bat and ball in modern-day cricket has once again come under the spotlight, with Sunil Gavaskar voicing strong concerns over how heavily the game now favours batters in the T20 era. With massive scores becoming routine in the ongoing IPL 2026 season and totals above 250 no longer considered safe, Gavaskar believes bowlers are being left with very little protection. The former India captain pointed to shorter boundaries, stricter fielding restrictions and the growing power of modern bats as key reasons behind the growing imbalance.
Writing in his column for Sportstar, Gavaskar specifically questioned the current interpretation of the wide bouncer rule. According to him, fast bowlers are being unfairly penalised when a short ball passes only slightly above the batter’s head. “There’s the ‘wide ball’ call for a bouncer going barely over the batter’s head.
This is like asking a fast bowler to bowl with one hand tied behind his back,” Gavaskar wrote. He argued that while grounds still have enough space to push boundaries further back, bowlers are instead being put under even more pressure through strict laws. Gavaskar suggested that pacers should be allowed a little more margin when bowling bouncers.