“Need To Be Observed…” Ravi Shastri Picks Two India Stars Whose Workload Needs To Be Managed

All the cricket world’s focus is right now on the T20 World Cup. For the Rohit Sharma-led Team India, the 2022 edition of the T20 World Cup presents a great chance to end a nine-year-old drought – of that of not winning any ICC event since 2013. Keeping that in mind, India are preparing for the showpiece event with series of bilaterals and also the multi-team Asia Cup. Former India coach Ravi Shastri has now picked two players whose workload needs to be managed leading up to the T20 World Cup.

The first player in that list in Hardik Pandya, the all-rounder, who has lent much needed balance to the Indian playing eleven. The nest player is fast bowler Jasprit Bumrah, who will miss the Asia Cup due to an injury.

“He is one of the most important cogs in India’s wheel. You take him out, the balance goes awry. We missed him last year at the World Cup where he could not bowl. No one is close to the quality that he possess,” Shastri said in a press conference organised by Star Sports.

“He has to be watched very closely. With the games coming up (before the T20 World cup), Bumrah and Hardik need to be observed very carefully to ensure there is no breakdown. They are your two important players.”

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In the continental Asia Cup, Virat Kohli will come back into the playing eleven after being rested for the West Indies series, while K L Rahul returns after an injury lay off.

Can the two senior batters show the same aggression the younger players have shown in their absence? “Why not? They are very experienced players,” said Shastri. “They have played enough IPL and T20s and it should not be tough for them to adjust. With Rishabh, Hardik, Jadeja there is enough depth in the middle and lower order to get the innings back on track if top order falls cheaply.”