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'India have gone away from Ashwin, Chahar...': Manjrekar identifies 3 'game-changing' spinners ahead of T20 World Cup
The recently-concluded series against South Africa was India's third T20 assignment in the build-up to this year's World T20 in Australia.
He may have found purpose in pushing the experimental boundaries and stepping into unchartered waters but Ravichandran Ashwin's T20 spell with the Indian team still remains blurry. The seasoned off-spinner was a part of the squad for the 2021 World T20 – a tournament that saw his return to the format after a four-year hiatus. At present, Ashwin won't be pigeonholed as a Test player, especially with the impact he has had in his first IPL season with Rajasthan Royals.
From mankading and dishing out carrom balls over conventional off-spin to retiring out with 10 balls still to go – Ashwin and out-of-the-box thinking go hand in hand. But it remains to see whether he plays the upcoming T20 showpiece event.
With Yuzvendra Chahal in sensational form, India will most certainly have a rejigged spin attack in Australia. Fresh from a stellar IPL season with Rajasthan Royals, Chahal ended the South Africa Twenty20s with six wickets in four games. On the other hand, previous World T20 picks Rahul Chahar and Varun Chakravarthy seem nowhere in the current picture.
Former India cricketer-turned-commentator Sanjay Manjrekar has identified Chahal as a certain pick for the T20 competition that's just four months away. He also backed young Ravi Bishnoi and finger spinner Axar Patel for the tournament.
While Chahal ruled the roost in the recently-concluded IPL edition, his India teammate and Delhi Capitals tweaker Kuldeep Yadav found his lost mojo with 21 wickets. Manjrekar said the chinaman bowler can also make a successful return to the national fold – provided he stays fit.
"India have quality in the seam department but other international teams like Pakistan and South Africa have it as well. No matter how much quality India have in their seam, they start winning when spinners make a contribution. Yes, India have gone away from Chahar, Ashwin, and Chakaravarthy. They are currently looking at Chahal, Bishnoi and Axar. Jadeja might come in too. But I would also like to see Kuldeep once he is fit. If India have to win and get into the final round of the tournament, they need two game-changing spinners," Manjrekar told Hindustan Times in a virtual interaction organised by Sony Sports.
"Spinners would get two-three wickets and completely change the course of the game. India need to start zeroing on their three spinners in the squad. Chahal has almost sealed his berth and Kuldeep can also come into the mix. Kuldeep had an interesting season with Delhi Capitals. Axar is also a reliable finger spinner. Zeroing on the three spinners might be one of the top agendas of the team management. It would set India apart from others," he added.
According to Manjrekar, Avesh Khan has a slight upper hand over Harshal Patel in Australian conditions. Avesh, who was among the top wicket-takers of the 2022 IPL season with 18 plucks, returned his T20 best figures of 4/18 in the fourth Twenty20 against South Africa last week.
"There are a lot of seam bowling options but Australia is a place where you won't get the pitch you get in the sub-continent. India will also have to see how someone like Avesh, Harshal or Arshdeep can do on such wickets. For the trip to Australia, India will go for seam bowlers who can leave a mark on pitches where the ball will come a lot better and there will be some bounce, where Avesh might have a slight edge over Harshal," Manjrekar elaborated.
Watch the LIVE coverage of Ireland vs India - 1st & 2nd T20i on SONY SIX (English), SONY TEN 3 (Hindi) & SONY TEN 4 (Tamil & Telugu) channels on 26th & 28th June 2022 from 9:00 pm IST.
