Commentator Sanjay Manjrekar has picked three Indian players to watch out for in the upcoming limited-over series against Sri Lanka. Manjrekar has picked Suryakumar Yadav, Chetan Sakariya and Varun Chakravarthy as his three players.
Suryakumar Yadav has been a consistent performer in the domestic circuit as well as the IPL while playing for Mumbai Indians. The right-hander had scored a fifty in his debut batting innings while playing against England. In fact, Yadav was a tad unlucky not to get his maiden call-up earlier as he has been delivering goods on a consistent basis.
Manjrekar said while talking to Sportskeeda, “One is Suryakumar Yadav. You know India had a middle-order problem in white-ball cricket. It became a big reason for India’s loss at the 2019 World Cup. Suryakumar Yadav looks a perfect fit for the middle order, to play at No.3 or No.4.”
“So we will have to see his form because his international debut was very good but there is so much competition that he will have to continuously give performances like that. The class we are seeing in his batting over the last two-three years in white-ball cricket, in the IPL, the expectation is that he will carry that form to Indian cricket.”
Subsequently, Manjrekar selected Chetan Sakariya, who impressed while playing his debut season in the IPL for Rajasthan Royals. Sakariya has shown a big heart and scalped seven wickets in seven matches and bowled with an economy rate of 8.22.
“The second player whose performance I am looking forward to, I hope he gets a chance as well, is Chetan Sakariya. I was just amazed that such a new guy who has hardly played any senior cricket, the way he bowled in the IPL. He is a left-arm seamer, so will also bring some variation in the Indian attack.”
“The success he enjoyed in the IPL, it was not that he was bowling just the middle overs, sometimes your economy rate looks very good by bowling the easy overs, he bowled all the tough overs and despite that a very good economy rate and a good strike rate. Seeing all that, it seems that he has different skills to survive in each of the stages of an innings.”
Last but not the least, Manjrekar picked Varun Chakravarthy as his third player to watch out for. Chakravarthy was picked for the England series in home conditions but he could not clear the fitness test. The mystery spinner from Tamil Nadu has impressed with his variations and snared seven wickets in seven matches for KKR in the first phase of IPL 2021.
“The third player is Varun Chakravarthy. It is probably time now to see more spinners, for quite a few years Kuldeep Yadav and Yuzvendra Chahal have flown the Indian tricolor, so it will be good to have more options.”
The first ODI between India and Sri Lanka will be played at R. Premadasa International Cricket Stadium on 13th July.
