India will take on Australia in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy© BCCI
Former Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) chairman Ramiz Raja believes Team India should use whiteball specialist Suryakumar Yadav in the four-match test series against Australia, starting with the first match in Nagpur on February 9. Ramiz, the longest form of the game, who has earned them a lot of praise, suggested that Suryakumar will bring in the x-factor because of his fearless batting approach. The 32-year-old has yet to make his test debut for the team.
“India should play Suryakumar Yadav as he will generate pace in the match. India have appointed a couple of T20 specialists to their squad for the first two tests. It’s a good move as fans appreciate an entertaining kind of cricket in these days a test match. Look at the way England played against Pakistan. They scored 300-400 in one day. So Suryakumar will speed up the game and India can take advantage of this by building pressure (on Australia),” Ramiz said in his YouTube video channel.
Suryakumar, who is currently the No. 1 batsman in the T20I rankings, was a revelation for the Indian cricket team in limited overs cricket.
While multiple pundits have tipped him to become an all-format player in the future, his inclusion in the Test team for the Border-Gavaskar Trophy is the closest he’s come to the red ball game.
With Rishabh Pant missing out on the Test series due to the injuries sustained in the accident, it could be up to Suryakumar to play the aggressor, given the chance.
India is likely to field three spinners, including Ravichandran Ashwin and returning Ravindra Jadeja, but Sharma has not revealed the starting line-up.
(with AFP inputs)
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