Former India wicketkeeper Dinesh Karthik feels captain Suryakumar Yadav might face a stern test on the sluggish Colombo surface during India’s ICC Men’s T20 World Cup clash against Pakistan on February 15. The 35-year-old began the tournament in emphatic fashion, hammering an unbeaten 84 off 49 balls against the USA.
However, he couldn’t replicate that form in the next match versus Namibia, where he was stumped for 12 off 13 deliveries by left-arm spinner Bernard Scholtz. Speaking on Cricbuzz, Karthik was asked whether Suryakumar could be India’s key weapon to counter the sticky Colombo pitch and Pakistan’s spin attack.
“Surya is always a very good player on good pitches. On slightly slow pitches, he has his challenges. His batting revolves around using pace, which he won’t get as much. He’s a good player of spin. But how he executes the shots other than the sweep will determine how effective he is.”
Dinesh Karthik further identified Abhishek Sharma as India’s crucial batter for the high-voltage clash against Pakistan, stating:
“The key is actually Abhishek Sharma because if he takes India off to a good start, then things look very different. He steps out when playing spin so it’ll be interesting to see how he plays on a slow pitch.”
“Kuldeep Likely To Replace Arshdeep In Playing XI”- Former India Keeper
The former wicketkeeper also suggested that Kuldeep Yadav might come into the playing XI in place of Arshdeep Singh, hinting at a possible reshuffle in the team’s bowling combination.
“It won’t be surprising at all if Kuldeep comes in for Arshdeep Singh. That means they’ll start with Hardik Pandya and Jasprit Bumrah. Axar Patel and Varun Chakaravarthy will bowl in the powerplay so it’ll change up a little bit of the dynamics.”
“That’s the trade-off in bringing in Kuldeep Yadav because through the middle you’ve your wicket-taking opportunity with a spinner,” said Karthik.
Kuldeep Yadav did not feature in India’s first two matches of the tournament, but he could prove to be a strong option on the likely spin-friendly Colombo surface.
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