DHARAMSHALA- Hardik Pandya’s absence does upset the balance of the Indian playing eleven but head coach Rahul Dravid dropped good enough hints about Mohammed Shami and Suryakumar Yadav being in contention without confirming the preferred combination for the World Cup game against New Zealand on Sunday.
Pandya has injured his left ankle while bowling during the previous match against Bangladesh in Pune and is currently under supervision of BCCI medical team at National Cricket Academy.
“…obviously, he (Hardik) is an important player for us, so we will have to work around that and see what is the best combination that we can come up with. We will have to see what works best for these conditions and these wickets. But probably might not have the kind of balance that we probably used in the first four games,” Dravid was very practical in his thought-process.
Why Shami has a good chance of playing?
That Shami could come into the picture was clear when he termed Shardul being looked as the fourth seamer in the set-up where Pandya was ahead in the pecking order.
Dravid didn’t disclose the playing XI and Hardik’s possible replacement but hinted that besides Shami, Ravichandran Ashwin is also an option.
“Obviously, the three seamers, having someone like Shami sitting out there and bringing him in this game is a great option. In some cases, there is Ashwin who has obviously been sitting out, who has great quality as well. So, there are two or three combinations we could use considering this till Hardik gets back,” he added.
Dravid is someone who is not even known to reveal simplest of open and shut team combinations, even when he used to be a captain. Typically, he said that all options are being explored but one could read between the lines.
“We certainly can go with, obviously, the three fast bowlers or the three spinners. With that kind of combination, we still could play Ash (Ashwin) and move Jadeja up,” he said.
“Many different, different permutations and combinations. I wouldn’t want to give too much away. I mean, we are pretty clear on what our playing 11 is tomorrow.
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