In the absence of Rishabh Pant, who will be the better option against Australia, Mohammad Azharuddin told the name
Pant was badly injured in a car accident in the last week of December while traveling from Delhi to Roorkee. He will be sidelined for most of the 2023 season while he recovers from the injury.
Former India captain Mohammad Azharuddin believes that Ishan Kishan can be a better option for the wicket-keeper batsman in the absence of Rishabh Pant for the four-match Test series against Australia. Azhar, who is playing the role of a commentator in the International League T20 in UAE, said in an interview to PTI-language that what happened to Pant is very sad. It is difficult to fill his place in the Test team but due to his aggressive style of batting, Kishan is a strong contender for a place in the team.
Pant was badly injured in a car accident in the last week of December while traveling from Delhi to Roorkee. He will be sidelined for most of the 2023 season while he recovers from the injury. Azhar said, “Very bad happened to Pant. Kishan has been selected in the Indian Test team and the way he is in form, I think he will be a stronger contender for wicket-keeper batsman.
The former artistic right-handed batsman said, “Kishan also plays fearlessly like Pant and he is a left-handed batsman. This kind of variety (left-handed batsman) is needed in India’s top and middle order.
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However, it will not be easy for Kishan to make it to the playing XI of the Test team due to the presence of Kona Bharat. Bharath has been with the team for almost a year now and has scored three half-centuries in four first-class matches in the last month and a half, including a 77 when he represented India A against Bangladesh A.
Kishan could not retain his place in the ODI team despite scoring a double century against Bangladesh. Azhar lauded the decision to pick Kishan along with Suryakumar Yadav in the Test squad but was not happy with the decision not to give either of them a chance in the opening two ODIs against Sri Lanka.
He said, “When the player is in rhythm then it is not right to sit outside the team. Suryakumar Yadav has the potential to play for the Indian team in all three formats. He has also done well in Ranji matches recently.
He said, “As much as I have seen Suryakumar’s batting, I can say that like Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli, he too can play in every format. India has got such a batsman after a long time who can play in all three formats.
This former player, who scored more than 15,000 runs in international cricket, said, “It is very difficult to make a place in the team, in such a situation, both these players will have to prove themselves when given a chance.”
This former player, who led the Indian team in 221 matches (Test and ODI), also advocated having a separate captain for each format in international cricket.
“A lot of cricket is being played now. In such a situation, teams will need to have a different captain in each format to achieve regular success. Not only the captain, I would also like to have a different coach of different format.