Former Indian assistant coach Abhishek Nayar has picked India’s playing XI for the first T20I against the West Indies. Nayar backed Naman Dhir ahead of Kuldeep Yadav, stating that the former would be able to give something to the team with the bat.
Head coach Gautam Gambhir has backed all-rounders ahead of specialist bowlers in his tenure and Nayar reckons Dhir can play ahead of Yadav as he had done a decent job in the ODI series.
While Kuldeep bagged seven wickets in three ODIs against the West Indies, Dhir could only take a solitary wicket in three games.
“Because I have been in that support staff, I am trying to think that way. That’s my thinking and probably theirs as well. The fact that Naman Dhir has been brought in place of Washington Sundar, and the West Indies have a lot of left-handers, you would want a Naman Dhir to bowl in the middle overs,” Abhishek Nayar said on Star Sports.
“Why Naman Dhir ahead of Kuldeep Yadav for me is because I feel Naman Dhir can add value with the bat. You know Gautam Gambhir is someone who loves all-rounders. Naman Dhir is someone who can give you something with the bat, and he bowled well in this series (ODIs against the West Indies),” Nayar observed.
Meanwhile, there was no place for Vaibhav Sooryavanshi in Nayar’s team as he backed Abhishek Sharma and Sanju Samson to open the innings.
“Sanju Samson should play. Abhishek Sharma – without a doubt. So the batting is secure. You have an opportunity now to sort of look at who your all-rounders are. If Washi gets injured, who comes in? If Nitish Kumar Reddy gets injured, who comes in? If Shivam Dube gets injured, who comes in? So this is where you see three fast bowlers, two spinners, but your fifth and sixth are both all-rounders,” he said.
“So you have got a Naman Dhir in, you have got a Shivam Dube in, and then you sort of see whether you can play that combination in good batting conditions and still manage to defend a score without a Bumrah, and if you can, which means you are looking in foresight in two years when you play the next World Cup, you have got a team ready,” Nayar observed.
Abhishek Nayar’s playing XI for 1st T20I against West Indies: Sanju Samson, Abhishek Nayar, Ishan Kishan, Shreyas Iyer, Tilak Varma, Shivam Dube, Axar Patel, Naman Dhir, Arshdeep Singh, Prince Yadav, Mayank Yadav.
