Former India opener Virender Sehwag said that Team India should give the rest to R Ashwin for their upcoming 2023 World Cup match against Afghanistan, which is scheduled to be played at the Arun Jaitley Stadium in Delhi on Wednesday, October 11. He also shared that the Indian think tank would want to give Ashwin a break to make sure he remains fresh for the important matches later on. Sehwag also suggested that Mohammed Shami could replace him in the playing XI in the upcoming match.
Speaking to Cricbuzz, Sehwag said, “I think Ravichandran Ashwin will be rested. Mohammed Shami has been in wonderful form, and he even took a fifer against Australia. This is a different wicket, and the ground is also smaller. Also, there is the age factor with Ashwin. So, India will look to save him for the big matches.”
R Ashwin bowled a tidy spell in India’s campaign opener in the 2023 World Cup against Australia in Chennai on Sunday. He conceded just 34 runs from 10 overs and picked up the crucial wicket of Cameron Green as well. Later, India secured a six-wicket win by chasing down the 200-run target with six wickets to spare as well. Notably, Virat Kohli and KL Rahul helped India win where Rahul remained unbeaten on 97 in the run chase, and Virat Kohli got out after scoring 85 runs.
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“We must praise Rahul Dravid and Rohit Sharma for convincing KL Rahul to keep wickets and bat in the middle-order. Rahul batting in this position has strengthened Team India’s middle-order.”Had he opened the innings and gotten out early, we would have had to rely on guys like Hardik Pandya and Suryakumar Yadav.”
Meanwhile, both Ishan Kishan and Shreyas Iyer got out on ducks and they received a lot of criticism for their shot selection. And, Virender Sehwag added that India should continue backing Kishan and Iyer as he believes they both would learn from their mistakes.
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“He (Iyer) awalked out to bat when India had lost two wickets. He should have taken some time. It wasn’t easy to hit on the rise on this wicket. However, he is a young player and will learn from his mistakes. It is very easy to criticise. But now that India have won, we should back these players. He is the same guy who hit a hundred against this same team. Ishan Kishan is in good form, and you tend to throw your bat in the direction of the ball. He went for that shot but didn’t realise how far the ball was. It has happened to me many times,” Virender Sehwag concluded.
