Former Indian skipper Sourav Ganguly has suggested that the current Indian skipper Virat Kohli should bat at the crucial no.4 position as it will provide solidity to India’s batting line-up in the three-match ODI series against England, starting in Nottingham on Thursday. Since August 2017, Indian team management has tried as many as six different batsmen — KL Rahul, Kedar Jadhav, Manish Pandya, Hardik Pandya, Dinesh Karthik and Ajinkya Rahane — at the number four position but Ganguly reckons that Kohli is best suited for the role.
Talking about the same, Sourav said, “If you look at this T20I series, I think they have formed the proper batting line-up. With Rahul at number three and Virat Kohli batting at number four, I think the problem has been sorted out. And I firmly believe it is also the right thing to do in the ODI format as well. I think that’s what Kohli is going to do (in the upcoming series) as well.”
Ganguly also opined that the visitors are having an edge over the hots in terms of a formidable bowling attack. India started off the English summer with a bang, winning the three-match T20I series 2-1, quite comprehensively at could’ve easily been 3-0 as well.
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Talking about the same, Sourav said, “They are a very good batting unit but bowling is the weaker part of their game. The way India won (easily) in Bristol when chasing 200 (in a T20 game), they will fancy their chances against this English bowling line-up in the ODI series. Off late, the Indian team has been doing well in T20Is. I have enjoyed their performance in this England series as well. They have set the tone for the latter contests with this win, but different formats will present different challenges for them. India should also know that they are a good unit and they can do well here.”
When asked about strengths of the Indian team in the series which is expected to be closely fought one between the two best sides in the world. Ganguly replied that Team India has a complete limited-over squad. He reckoned that this Indian team can make this English summer their own by defeating the hosts in ODIs and possibly in Tests as well.
Ganguly rated India as one of the most talented batting units in the game in the world. He said, “It is one of the most talented batting units in limited-overs’ in world cricket at the moment. The top-order is brilliant with Shikhar Dhawan and Rohit Sharma, and if they continue to score more runs at the top, they can challenge my partnership records with Sachin Tendulkar soon. Rohit, in particular, is a terrific player in the limited overs’ arena and will probably end up as one of the greats in white-ball cricket.”
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The former captain concluded by expressing his pleasure after watching Kuldeep Yadav’s performance on this UK trip so far. He said, “Conditions in England can vary vastly from wicket to wicket and so every game is a different challenge. You need wicket-taking spinners on these English wickets even as they change from game to game. Kuldeep is already in the Test squad when playing at home, but he should be in the first-eleven for all formats for the Indian team.”
