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| Edited By: DNA Web Team |Source: DNA Web Desk |Updated: Nov 10, 2022, 12:49 PM IST
The winner of India's semi-final match against England at the Adelaide Oval will meet Pakistan in the final of the ongoing T20 World Cup at the legendary MCG. But the game isn't easy for Indian captain Rohit Sharma, who must consider a few of selection decisions for the crucial match.
Sunil Gavaskar, a former Indian cricketer, has proposed that the team go on with an extra batter in the form of Rishabh Pant or Harshal Patel instead of Axar Patel for the semi-final encounter.
Sunil Gavaskar believes that the Men in Blue should play an extra hitter, Rishabh Pant, in place of the second spinner. He believes that since Hardik Pandya is back to his best, he can be identified as the designated fifth bowler, and India may replace the second spinner with a batter, bringing depth to the batting order.
He went on to say that if Rohit Sharma wants to keep his six bowling options, he should go with Harshal Patel rather than Axar Patel, considering the shorter square boundaries on offer in Adelaide.
"India needs to think about their bowling attack. Should they play two spinners or a batter in place of a spinner? Can Pant and Karthik play together? If they can, Suryakumar can be at 4, Pant at 5, Pandya at 6, and Karthik at 7. You can stretch your batting, and Hardik is now bowling, so he can be your fifth bowler. We have to think this through. If you take an extra bowler, you have to consider that the boundaries are short for spinners. You can take Harshal Patel,” Gavaskar said on Aaj Tak.
Gavaskar batted in place of Harshal Patel since he is skilled at defending shorter boundaries for Royal Challengers Bangalore in the IPL.
"If you're giving Axar Patel 1-2 overs, and can't use his full overs, then why are we picking him? He isn't scoring runs at no.7 as well. He's a good player, he played good in West Indies, but if you can't trust him with the ball, you should pick a bowler on whom you can depend,” he added.
India made a strong impact during the Super 12s, winning four of their five matches and finishing first in Group 2. The loss to South Africa was the only hiccup in an otherwise solid group stage performance.
