IND vs IRE: “Virat Kohli should open” - Harbhajan Singh omits Yashasvi Jaiswal as he picks his India XI for Ireland clash

Former India cricketer Harbhajan Singh picked his playing 11 of Team India for their upcoming clash against Ireland in the T20 World Cup 2024. He believes that conditions in New York will be tough for batting and hence Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli should open the batting.

India and Ireland will be up against each other in their first game of the T20 World Cup 2024. The match between the teams will be played at the Nassau County International Cricket Stadium in New York on Wednesday (5th June).

All the eyes will be on the Indian team as they begin their campaign and will be eager for a win. One of the most talked about things in Indian cricket over the past few days is what playing XI the Rohit Sharma-led side will field in the game.

As per Harbhajan Singh, opening the innings will be tough for Yashasvi Jaiswal in New York, where batting is tough. He pointed out that more than spinners, fast bowlers will play a huge role, reminding him about Anrich Nortje’s spell against Sri Lanka. Speaking in a video posted on his YouTube channel, he explained:

“Batting is going to be difficult on this pitch. You need your big players in such situations and Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli should open. With the platform that they can set, I feel it would be tough for Yashasvi Jaiswal to do the same in these conditions.

"When I was in India, I said that spinners would play a big role in this T20 World Cup. However, after arriving here, I feel that while spinners will be useful, the fast bowlers will be in the game every single ball on this pitch. We saw what Anrich Nortje did in that spell. Even an ordinary bowler has looked threatening here.”

Virat Kohli had a sensational campaign for Royal Challengers Bengaluru in the IPL 2024 as an opener. The batter racked up 741 runs and his experience at the top on the tough pitch in New York might prove to be handy for the team in the ongoing T20 World Cup 2024

At No.3, Harbhajan Singh backed Suryakumar Yadav and also preferred Rishabh Pant over Sanju Samson in the XI. The left-hander slammed a magnificent half-century in the warmup game against Bangladesh and looked in staggering touch.

Shivam Dube, Hardik Pandya, and Ravindra Jadeja are three all-rounders picked by Harbhajan Singh in his team for the match against Ireland. He also didn’t pick Kuldeep Yadav and backed Yuzvendra Chahal to play.

Harbhajan Singh also backed three pacers Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj, and Arshdeep Singh to feature in the XI.

Harbhajan Singh’s playing XI for the game against Ireland in T20 World Cup 2024

Here’s Harbhajan Singh’s playing XI for the game against Ireland in the T20 World Cup 2024:

Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, Suryakumar Yadav, Rishabh Pant, Shivam Dube, Hardik Pandya, Ravindra Jadeja, Yuzvendra Chahal, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj, Arshdeep Singh.