IND vs PAK: "We Need To Have One Left-Hander In The Middle Order" - Suresh Raina Backs Rishabh Pant In India's Playing XI

All the teams are in their final round of preparation with the T20 World Cup only a few days away. What India’s optimal starting XI should look like is yet unknown. The club is loaded with well-known players and strong hitters.

There aren’t many left-handed pitchers on the club, though, since Ravindra Jadeja is out injured. Rishabh Pant, a wicketkeeper and batter, is one possibility, although his recent T20 performance has not been fantastic.

Rishabh Pant Can Target Spinners In Middle Overs: Suresh Raina

Suresh Raina, a part of the 2011 World Cup champion squad, believes that a spot needs to be made for Rishabh Pant.

“Bowlers will have a lot of edge. They know which batters are capable.

We need to have one left-hander in the middle-order then you can really change the momentum because if you see KL Rahul, Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, Hardik Pandya, Dinesh, Surya, I don’t think Rishabh ka jagah ban raha hai (Rishabh Pant won’t be an automatic choice)

“But we need to somehow bring him for the middle overs. Because some of the spinners, you need to target them,” Raina said. 

“In the bigger ground, you need to bat with intent where you can dominate. Australia has a batting till No. 10. England also know how to play white-ball cricket. Rohit, Surya have got a great intent.

I think Virat will be the key because he knows how to finish. He has been batting really well. I hope if he bats for 20 overs, we will win all the matches.” 

On October 23, India launches their assault against Pakistan in Melbourne. 

Also Read: IND vs PAK: Twitter Reacts As Mohammed Shami Replaces Jasprit Bumrah In India’s Squad For ICC T20 World Cup 2022

India squad for ICC T20 World Cup: Rohit Sharma (Captain), KL Rahul (vice-captain), Virat Kohli, Suryakumar Yadav, Deepak Hooda, Rishabh Pant (wicket-keeper), Dinesh Karthik (wicket-keeper), Hardik Pandya, R. Ashwin, Yuzvendra Chahal, Axar Patel, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Harshal Patel, Arshdeep Singh, Mohammed Shami.