Ahead of the T20I series decider against England on Saturday, Team India has a key decision to make once again.
Star batsman KL Rahul has struggled throughout the series with his scores of 1,0,0,14 in the four matches so far. He managed to get some runs in the previous match, which would have calmed the nerves of the Indian team management, but he wasn’t able to get the team off to a start that was expected.
Ishan Kishan, who made a fantastic debut in the 2nd T20I, is a player capable of giving the team a perfect start in a key clash.
On Thursday, Kishan had missed out due to an injury and Team India persisted with KL Rahul. But if the Mumbai Indians star is fit to play on Saturday, will India bring him into the playing XI ahead of KL Rahul?
At least, that’s what former India fast bowler Zaheer Khan believes that the team should do.
Zaheer Khan said that he would be tempted to bring in Ishan Kishan for KL Rahul if the youngster is fit for the series-decider on Saturday. The former India pacer also suggested bringing in Axar Patel in the place of Washington Sundar for the 5th T20I.
“I will be honest, yes I will be tempted (to bring Ishan Kishan in instead of KL Rahul). And I will be tempted to make two changes, bring in left-arm spinner (Axar Patel) and maybe look to use him with the new ball and if Ishan Kishan is fit and available.
“Maybe throw the guy (Kishan) under pressure match. The decider is going to be a big one, let’s see how he responds. Sometimes it helps when you don’t have that clutter of thoughts, you are keeping things simple, looking to be aggressive.
“It has paid off in the first game (2nd T20I), he has looked comfortable or you can get a glimpse of what he can bring to the table if he is put under tremendous pressure,” Zaheer Khan told Cricbuzz.
