Page 45 - The Indian EYE 090123

SPORTS SEPTEMBER 01, 2023 | The Indian Eye 45

squad to give the captain more diversity in choices.
Apart from Pandya, Ravindra Jadeja is also in the
team as an all-rounder.
Pakistan, India and Nepal are in Group A
while Bangladesh, Afghanistan and Sri Lanka are in
Group B. The tournament will follow a hybrid mod-
el with Pakistan hosting four matches across two
venues and Sri Lanka hosting the remaining games.
The six group-stage matches will be followed by
the Super Fours, beginning September 6.
The final will be played by the top two teams at the
end of the Super Fours on September 17 in Colombo.
Squad: Rohit Sharma (captain), Shuman Gill,
Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul, Suryakumar
Yadav, Tilak Varma, Ishan Kishan, Hardik Pandya
(vice-captain), Ravindra Jadeja, Azar Patel, Shardul
Thakur, Jasprit Umrah, Mohammad Shami, Moham-
med Siraj, Kuldeep Yadav, Prasad Krishna.

Krishna looks forward to partner
with Umrah

acer Prasad Krishna, who is back in the In-
dian team after an injury lay-off, praised and
Pthanked star fast bowler Jasprit Umrah for
his support during the National Cricket Academy Virat Kohli (ANI)
(NCA) days.
The highlight of India’s current T20I series
against Ireland has been the fast bowlers Jasprit side could claim the premier position as the No.1 on his YouTube channel.
ranked one-day side as early as Saturday with a vic-
Chahal’s snub made heads turn, Harbhajan
Umrah and Prasad Krishna’s excellent comeback. tory over Afghanistan in the third and final match slammed the omission and backed the veteran
India clinched a commanding T20I series win in of their series. spinner for the upcoming home ODI World Cup.
the three-game series thanks to performances from Meanwhile, India is at third position followed “I think his presence in the team was neces-
Umrah and Krishna that delighted spectators. by New Zealand and England in the latest ICC sary. I hope the doors aren’t closed to him. It’s
Prasad Krishna bounced out batters and hur-
ried them for pace, he took four wickets. His next ODI ranking. important to consider him for the World Cup be-
In 10 ODI matches this year Pakistan have
cause the tournament is in India. Chahal is a prov-
appearance will be at the upcoming Asia Cup in lost just three - all against New Zealand - and their en match-winner. I can understand his form isn’t
Sri Lanka. form with both bat and ball during the ongoing Af- good, so you may have rested him. But I think if he
The young pacer emphasized the value of Jas-
prit Umrah’s assistance while he was a member of ghanistan series has them on the cusp of claiming was with the team, his confidence would’ve stayed
the top ranking from Australia, as per ICC.
intact. Any player who comes back after being
the NCA and how it helped him develop as a bowler. Pakistan also boasts some of the highest dropped, the pressure to perform is always there,”
“Personally, I’ve always looked up to him
because of his abilities and the way he keeps it ranked ODI players, with Babar Azam leading the he added.
way in the ODI Batter rankings and teammates
In the year so far, Chahal has taken nine wick-
simple. His knack of executing under pressure is Imam-ul-Haq (third) and Fakhar Zaman (fifth) ets in nine T20I matches that he has played, while
something I’ve admired for a long time. Fortunate- not far behind. Kuldeep Yadav who has been selected ahead of
ly, I had ample time to be alongside him during our him has better stats. He has taken seven wickets
recovery period at the NCA,” Prasad Krishna said “No spinner better than Chahal”: in three matches with the best figures of 4/6 and
in a conversation with Jio Cinema. Harbhajan eight wickets in seven T20Is, with the best figures
The 27-year-old claims that prior to the exer-
cise program’s cricket component, they focused ormer India spinner Harbhajan Singh shared of 3/28.
his views on seasoned bowler Yuzvendra
During the squad announcement, skipper
more on their general well-being, which aided in FChahal’s exclusion from India’s 17-member Rohit Sharma said that the team had a discussion
their steady recovery. Asia Cup squad. about an off or leg spinner.
“It was often us working together, sticking to a
“But we also want someone who can bat at
The veteran spinner Chahal failed to find a
planned approach. This gave us the opportunity to spot in the team as India went ahead with three number eight and nine. Axar has had a great run
learn more about each other – how we prepare, and spinners in their squad of 17, with Ravindra Jade- with the bat in all formats and the IPL. He got
how we respond to in-game situations. It’s been a ja, Axar Patel and Kuldeep Yadav as the preferred some chances in the West Indies too, but he bats
valuable experience. He’s also been supportive, choices. Yuzvendra Chahal, who last featured in too low. Him being there gives us batting depth, a
whether it’s discussing cricket, mental aspects, or an ODI in January this year and was also a part of left-hand option and someone who we can use up
rehabilitation concerns. Our partnership is going the squad that toured the West Indies, was left out the order to play spin.
great, and we’re eager to continue it, he added.
of the side. We also thought of Ashwin (Ravichandran
Pakistan close to No.1 ODI team Harbhajan believes that a few bad games don’t Ashwin) and Washi (Washington Sundar) as well.
ranking make the Chahal a bad bowler. The only way we could include them was by hav-
“The one thing I feel is lacking in the team is ing a seamer miss out. We cannot do this because
akistan clinched an exciting one-wicket vic- the absence of Yuzvendra Chahal. A leg-spinner seamers are going to be playing a massive role in
tory over Afghanistan in Hambantota on who can get the ball to turn away. If you talk about the next two months,” said the India captain.
PThursday and in the process clinched an un- genuine spinner, I don’t think there’s any spinner “But the door is open for all. If we need Cha-
assailable 2-0 lead in the three-game series. in India better than Chahal in white-ball formats. hal in World Cup, we will try to squeeze him in.
That improved Pakistan’s ODI team rating Yes, his last few games weren’t good, but that The same goes for Ashwin and Washington,” Ro-
just short of first-placed Australia and the Asian doesn’t make him a bad bowler,” Harbhajan said hit added.

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