Ishan Kishan
Ishan Kishan scored 56 on his debut. (Photo: Twitter)

Former Indian pacer Zaheer Khan has said that India should replace the out-of-form opener, KL Rahul, with wicketkeeper-batsman Ishan Kishan in the series-decider against England on Saturday.

Ahead of the fifth and final T20I, the Virat Kohli-led team-management will have a key decision to take as far as their opening combination is concerned.

While Rohit Sharma will be one of the openers, it will be interesting to see if the management persists with KL Rahul or will they rope in swashbuckler Ishan Kishan.

Ishan Kishan, KL Rahul, Zaheer Khan
Ishan Kishan (Image Credit: Twitter)

KL Rahul has had a forgettable series thus far. The stylish Indian opener has managed scores of 1,0,0,14 in his four outings. Ishan Kishan, on the other hand, had a memorable debut game where he smashed a match-winning half-century in the second T20I.

Kishan missed out on the 4th T20I due to groin issues but with him likely to be available for selection in the series-decider, India will have to make a choice between the two, especially considering that they can’t drop Suryakumar Yadav to accommodate both of them like they did in the third match.

Zaheer Khan also reckoned that India should include the left-arm spin of Axar Patel and maybe bowl him in the powerplay.

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“I will be honest, yes I will be tempted (to bring Ishan Kishan in instead of KL Rahul). And I will be tempted to make two changes, bring in left-arm spinner (Axar Patel) and maybe look to use him with the new ball and if Ishan Kishan is fit and available,” said Zaheer Khan on CricBuzz Live.

“Maybe throw the guy (Kishan) under pressure match. The decider is going to be a big one, let’s see how he responds. Sometimes it helps when you don’t have that clutter of thoughts, you are keeping things simple, looking to be aggressive,” he added.

“It has paid off in the first game (2nd T20I), he has looked comfortable or you can get a glimpse of what he can bring to the table if he is put under tremendous pressure,” he said.

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