India will begin their Asia Cup 2022 campaign on August 28 in a blockbuster clash with arch rivals Pakistan at Dubai. Post the win against Zimbabwe in the ODI series, most of the regular members of the Men in Blue will be in action in the Asia Cup. Two of the T20 mainstays that will return to the fold are wicketkeeper-batsmen Rishabh Pant and Dinesh Karthik, the latter finding a new lease of life as a specialist finisher.
However, with a full strength batting order back to the fold for the Men in Blue, accomodating both Pant and Karthik would be difficult for the team management. Indian Test specialists Cheteshwar Pujara feels that with both players in tremendous form in T20Is, it will be difficult to drop either of them.
“It’s a big headache for the team management as both (Pant and Karthik) are doing really well in T20 format. The call is whether you want someone to bat at No.5 or you want a finisher who can bat at No. 6 or 7,” Pujara said in an interaction with ESPNCricinfo.
Pujara felt that both Pant and Karthik have their merits to get into the playing XI, but Karthik is definitely the need of the hour if the team wants a better finisher. “I would say, if you want someone at No. 5, Rishabh Pant is a better choice. But if you want to a have a batting line-up with a very good finisher who is likely to play 10 or 20 balls and give you 40-50 runs, I think DK (Karthik) is the better option,” he said.
Cheteshwar Pujara however felt that the team management might just go with Rishabh Pant ahead of Dinesh Karthik. “Personally, I think, knowing the team management (and) knowing how things work around the team, I would think they might go with Pant because he is a left-hander and gives the team a bit of balance with left-right combination,” he said.
Pujara also heaped praises on Suryakumar Yadav calling him one of the best T20 players in India right now.
“Surya is one of our top T20 players, so I would definitely want him in the side because he can… he is someone who has done really well for Mumbai Indians (in IPL). Whenever I’ve seen him at No. 4, he has done exceptionally well. So, I don’t think the team management will leave him out. If Rishabh and Karthik both have to play then I think you have to drop one of the top-order (batters), which is impossible. So, I don’t think both can make the playing XI,” he added.
Cheteshwar Pujara also said that Hardik Pandya should come in to bat as the finisher should Dinesh Karthik not play. In the same scenario, he also wanted Rishabh Pant to play as many overs as possible.
“I would prefer Hardik for that (finisher’s) role because he is someone who can strike from ball one and his strike rate is above 150. I don’t think Rishabh can do that job because he needs a little more time. And if he (Rishabh) comes in to bat, it should be somewhere around 10 or 12 overs… and if he gets 8-10 overs, he can score a 50 or a bit more than that,” added Pujara.
