Former Indian all-rounder Irfan Pathan has backed Jitesh Sharma to play ahead of Ishan Kishan in T20Is. Pathan said Sharma is a Suryakumar Yadav-type player, who can take the game away from the opposition with his blistering batting.

Meanwhile, Ishan Kishan played in the first three T20Is against Australia whereas Sharma was backed in the last two games of the series. Kishan scored 110 runs in three T20I matches at an average of 36.67 and a strike rate of 144.74 in the series. On the other hand, Jitesh Sharma returned with scores of 35 and 24 in the last two matches against the Aussies.

Sharma is known to hit the ground running and can bat in the lower order whereas Pathan feels Kishan is a one-trick pony as he is best suited for the opening slot. But India already has top-order batters like Yashasvi Jaiswal, Rohit Sharma, Shubman Gill and Ruturaj Gaikwad.

“I will play Jitesh hands down. I have maintained from earlier that if you have to play Ishan, whether it is ODIs or T20Is, you have to play him at the top, and there is a traffic jam at the top,” said Pathan on Star Sports.

Meanwhile, Sharma scored 309 runs in 14 matches with a strike rate of 156.06 in IPL 2023 while playing for Punjab Kings.

“When you bat in the middle order, you will get spin in front of you, and there you (Kishan) might have difficulties at times. Jitesh Sharma is a slightly creative player. He is a Suryakumar Yadav-mold type player. You will see him playing the lap and different types of shots,” Pathan added.

Jitesh Sharma is part of the T20I squad against South Africa and he will aim to make the most of his opportunity. The first T20I between these two teams was washed out due to persistent rain.

The second game will be played at St George’s Park, Gqeberha on Tuesday.