Pant or Karthik? Bhuvneshwar or Harshal? Here's look at India's probable T20 11 vs England
The team management will have to take a tough call to chose two between Pant, Karthik and Suryakumar.
Starting July 7, India will take on England in a white-ball series comprising three ODIs and as many T20s. Considering every player is available for selection, this is India's probable eleven vs England.
Openers - Rohit Sharma, Ishan Kishan
By the time the T20s start, Rohit will be fit and raring to go. We haven't seen Rohit play the shortest format of the game since the IPL, where he was constantly under the scanner for his poor form.
Ishan Kishan, on the other hand, has all but sealed his place for the T20 World Cup down-under as a reserve opener. If he continues to play the way he has been, he might even challenge KL Rahul's place as the first-choice opener.
Middle Order - Kohli, Suryakumar, Pant
Considering his record, Virat Kohli will walk straight into the eleven. Suryakumar Yadav was performing well in the IPL before he got injured. He also has the most sixes for India in T20 cricket in the last two years.
He had an average of 43.29 in the recently concluded IPL, with a strike rate of 145.67. These are some great numbers. He has also been performing well in the blue jersey.
Pant is a world-beater and is arguably the most dangerous batsman in the world on his day. But, the fact remains that as far as the performances are concerned, they haven't really come in the shortest format of the game.
In Pant's defence, he has been timing the ball well. We could see that even in the IPL. He had a strike rate of over 150 throughout,
Dravid has made it clear that Pant is one of the most important members of the team going forward, so, unfortunately, Dinesh Karthik will have to make way for him.
All-rounders - Hardik and Jadeja
Hardik has been in the form of his life with the bat. With the ball, the GT captain may have some work to do, but he will assume the duties of the finisher at number 6 for India and will be required to bowl a couple of overs when required.
Jadeja's resurgence with the bat needs no introduction. He has proved his bowling capabilities time and again, but it is with the bat that Jadeja has impressed every one. He, along with Pandya, will act as finishers for India in the World Cup.
Bowling Attack - Bumrah, Chahal, Shami, Bhuvneshwar/Harshal Patel
Bumrah, along with Shami, will open the attack for Team India. Chahal was the leading wicket-taker in the recently concluded IPL and will be one of the best-attacking options in the middle overs. Bhuvneshwar Kumar, at death, can be a tough customer to deal with, and we have seen that time and time again.
In case the team management decides to go with Harshal instead of Bhuvneshwar, that too will give them a great bowling option in the middle and death overs. He can also prove to be a handy batter lower down the order.
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