Former Indian Test batter Cheteshwar Pujara believes Prince Yadav replacing Mayank Yadav might be the only change we see in India’s playing XI for the second T20I against the West Indies. Mayank registered expensive figures of 1-40 in his quota of four overs against the Windies in the series opener at the Ekana Cricket Stadium, Lucknow on Tuesday.
India won the first T20I by eight wickets to take a 1-0 lead in the series and the hosts could look to continue their impetus.
“I will stick to the same batting combination. So it will be Sanju Samson and Abhishek Sharma to open the innings, Ishan Kishan to continue batting at No. 3, and then Shreyas Iyer to bat at No. 4. Depending on the situation of the game, you would want Tilak Varma, Naman Dhir, and Shivam Dube to bat at No. 5, 6, and 7. Axar Patel at No. 8. Kuldeep Yadav will also be a part of the playing XI. So 10 are sorted,” Pujara said on JioStar.
However, Pujara said he would like to back Mayank Yadav and not drop him after one bad game for the team.
“The only change we might see is whether you want to go ahead with Mayank Yadav or Prince Yadav. Prince Yadav was part of my playing XI before the series started, but since the Indian team has gone ahead with Mayank Yadav, you would want to give him another opportunity. You don’t keep changing your playing XI. You can’t drop a player after one game. That’s why I will stick with Mayank,” he added.
Pujara highlighted that it was a fair call by captain Shreyas Iyer after Arshdeep Singh bowled three overs in the Powerplay in the series opener.
“You also have to look at who the other bowler is, and Mayank didn’t get off to a good start, which forced Shreyas Iyer to bowl Arshdeep in the Powerplay. He had to bowl an extra over. It was a fair call. Also, it suits Arshdeep really well because he loves bowling in the Powerplay,” he replied.
The former right-hander said India can not afford to adopt the same tactics if they are playing with only two seamers.
“He can swing the ball. He has picked up wickets. So there is nothing wrong in him bowling three overs, but when you look at the bigger picture, you can’t afford to bowl three overs of a seamer if you are playing just two seamers. You can’t do that in every game. That’s where the other bowlers will have to step in and try to support Arshdeep as much as possible,” Pujara observed.
The second game of the series will be played on Friday in Ranchi.
