After having faced a 10-wicket defeat to Pakistan in the T20 World Cup 2021, India is all set to take on New Zealand on Sunday. While Pakistan has already won three consecutive games, the game between India and New Zealand will be crucial. And, India cricketer Dinesh Karthik said it will be a quarter-final match.

While speaking about the match during a show on Cricbuzz alongside Michael Vaughan, he said: “This is a quarter-final for India. They know it. If they get through tomorrow’s game, they know that they have a pretty easy, well it’s not easy because there’s Afghanistan there but you would like to think there is a good chance to move forward in this tournament with a win. I’m really excited to see how India is going to shape up against New Zealand.”

On the other hand, Vaughan asked for more intent from the Indians with the bat as well.

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Vaughan added: “I think India need to go for it a bit more with the bat. If they want to win this World Cup, they will want to go for it. They are a little bit too safe. They have wonderful talent and wonderful batters that can play an aggressive game pretty much from ball one and all the way down to the 20th over. They’ve got so much skill and power. Great combinations as well. I would like to see them play with a bit more risk. Particularly after the 6th over. From 6-12 overs, I still think you have to go for boundaries. The old days of knocking it around and hanging in there won’t win you games against England and Pakistan.”

However, both Vaughan and Dinesh Karthik stated that Shardul Thakur should be added to the Indian side if the team looks to bring any changes. While Karthik said that Thakur has a knack for taking wickets, Vaughan said, “The Lord can do no wrong.”

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“I would like to see one change. I would like to see Shardul Thakur to play. The choice is instead of Bhuvi or Shami. Either of them is okay, both of them are great bowlers but I would love to see Shardul Tahkur in the side. He’s at the peak of his confidence, getting those big wickets. He’s ready to bowl anywhere, from the first over to the death. He’s got the knack of taking wickets. Another name that has been spoken about a lot is Ravi Ashwin but I don’t see where you can fit him in this team,” Dinesh Karthik concluded.