Former Indian assistant coach Abhishek Nayar reckons India should look to wrap up the series against the West Indies in the fourth game at Hyderabad. Nayar believes if India takes an impregnable lead of 3-1 in the series after the fourth game, they should play Vaibhav Sooryavanshi in the final match.
Sooryavanshi recently returned with scores of 38 and 15 in the semifinal and final of the Asian Games against Sri Lanka and Pakistan, respectively.
The youngster didn’t get his chances against Afghanistan, and head coach Gautam Gambhir said he would need to wait for his chances.
Nayar said on Star Sports, “I would want India to go 3-1 up, and for the last game, Suryavanshi plays. So keep it simple: Go 3-1 up, wrap the series up, and let Suryavanshi play the last one.”
The KKR head coach praised Abhishek Sharma for taking his time before taking on the attack against off-spinner Roston Chase. Sharma went on to score a majestic knock of 69 runs off just 30 balls.
“Giving yourself time is also setting yourself up for how you are going to take them down. Every single ball you take, you are also figuring out the bowler’s plans. Once Abhishek played six balls, Roston Chase, as the bowler, started chasing him. Abhishek has a reputation, and Chase is also bowling to that reputation. So once you’ve played those six balls, he is going to start following you,” said Nayar (via the aforementioned source).
“There is a battle within a battle. You’ve got someone out twice, but once Abhishek played those 5 to 6 deliveries, he’s starting to preempt what Abhishek is going to do next because you’ve shown him all your deliveries that you’re going to bowl as an off-spinner. That’s what makes Abhishek Sharma special. He can go from ball one, but if required, he can take his time and put you under pressure.”
The fourth T20I between India and the West Indies will be played at Hyderabad on Wednesday.
