After the grand affairs of the IPL have ended, its time for the Indian cricket fans to cheer fir the blue jersey once again.
Starting off, we have the T20 International series against South Africa which will have its first game held at Arun Jaitley Stadium in Delhi on June 9.
The series consisting of 5 T20Is will be played by the Men in Blue in the absence of senior players Virat Kohli, Jasprit Bumrah and the skipper Rohit Sharma. So, KL Rahul will lead the team and Rishab Pant would be his deputy.
Former Coach of the Indian Cricket Team Ravi Shastri opinionated about his perfect playing XI for the upcoming games against South Africa.
During an conversation on the Star Sports show ‘Game Plan’, Shastri picked Ruturaj Gaikwad as KL Rahul’s opening partner for the 1st T20I and he put Ishan Kishan at No.3.
Shastri stated: “I think they will go with the guys they will want to see first – the Rahuls, the Ruturaj Gaikwads – maybe they will open. They will probably give Ishan (Kishan) a break in this game or bat him at three.”
The former India cricketer chose Shreyas Iyer, Rishabh Pant, and Hardik Pandya as his next three batters. He said:
“If you bat him (Ishan) at three, then it will be Shreyas (Iyer) at No. 4, (Rishabh) Pant at No. 5 and Hardik (Pandya) at No. 6.”
Umran or Arshdeep depending on the ground and what the pitch is like – Ravi Shastri
Ravi Shastri then picked spin-bowling all-rounder Axar Patel at No.7 and named Yuzvendra Chahal as his spin-bowling partner.
For the fast bowling options, Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Harshal Patel were there in his team and he said that amongst the newcomers — Arshdeep Singh and Umran Malik — one will play depending on the conditions.
He elaborated: “No. 7 will be Axar Patel. I think eight will be Bhuvneshwar Kumar batting-wise, then Chahal, Arshdeep Singh/Umran Malik and Harshal Patel. Umran or Arshdeep depending on the ground and what the pitch is like.
“I think if Bhuvi plays, then Umran is better because Bhuvi can do a job for you at the death. But then again you are looking for someone at the death, they are looking to develop that bowler. So if Harshal is going to do that, he plays that game.”