IND vs SL: Wasim Jaffer Picks Suryakumar Yadav Over KL Rahul For 1st ODI vs Sri Lanka In Guwahati

Former India National Cricket Team opening batsman Wasim Jaffer has said that the in-form middle-order batter Suryakumar Yadav will be his preference over KL Rahul for a place in India’s playing XI for the first ODI of the three-match series against Sri Lanka.

The ODI series opener between India and Sri Lanka will be played at the Barsapara Cricket Stadium in Guwahati on Tuesday, January 10.

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Speaking on ESPNcricinfo, Wasim Jaffer said that the focus will be on the Indian batters in the ODI series against Sri Lanka because they failed to perform very well in the last year’s ODI series against Bangladesh.

“The red-hot form that Suryakumar Yadav is in, I prefer him over KL Rahul for the first ODI. The focus will be on the Indian batters because they did not play well in the Bangladesh ODIs. The bowlers performed really well there,” Jaffer told ESPNCricinfo.

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Notably, KL Rahul, who was recently removed from the vice-captaincy role in ODIs, bats in the middle-order in 50-over cricket and his recent performances have not been highly impactful.

Wasim Jaffer added that the top-4 of the Indian team will have to play big knocks in the upcoming ODI series.

“Earlier, when the strength of the Indian team was the top three with Rohit Sharma, Shikhar Dhawan and Virat Kohli we usually saw centuries on a consistent basis from them. That has not been happening for quite a while now. If India want to go for scores like 280-300 or over 300, then the top 4 has to fire.”

Shreyas Iyer is in good form, he has been the standout player – Wasim Jaffer

Jaffer showered praise on Shreyas Iyer and said that he has been performing consistently and has been the standout performer. However, the former opening batsman feels that the top-3 batters will have to take the responsibility to help India post huge totals on the board.

“Shreyas Iyer is in good form, he has been the standout player, has scored runs consistently. But still, Rohit Sharma, Ishan Kishan and Virat Kohli will have to take some responsibility in this series,” he added.

Jaffer further said that the expectations are very high from the modern-day batting greats Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma to register big scores in the upcoming ODI series.

“The Barsapara stadium is a huge venue, there is no doubt about that and we can expect a high-scoring ODI as well. There will be a lot of eyes on Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli who are returning to the team, there will be expectations of a high score from them as well,” he added.

Also Read: IND vs SL: Jasprit Bumrah All Set To Miss ODI Series vs Sri Lanka After NCA’s Recommendation – Reports

Virat Kohli | Rohit Sharma | Rishabh Pant | KL Rahul | Suryakumar Yadav | Sanju Samson | Shreyas Iyer | Yuzvendra Chahal | Jasprit Bumrah