Hardik Pandya’s absence does upset the balance of the Indian playing XI and they are perhaps thinking of playing Mohammed Shami and Suryakumar Yadav against New Zealand on Sunday to restore some of that balance. At least that is what could be made of from the hints Rahul Dravid gave.
Pandya hurt his left ankle and is currently under the supervision of the BCCI medical team at the National Cricket Academy in Bangalore.
“...obviously, he (Hardik) is an important player for us, so we will have to work around that and see what is the best combination that we can come up with. We will have to see what works best for these conditions and these wickets. But probably might not have the kind of balance that we probably used in the first four games,” Dravid said on the match eve.
That Shami could come into the picture was clear when he termed Shardul as the fourth seamer in the set-up where Pandya was ahead in the pecking order.
“Obviously, the three seamers, having someone like Shami sitting out there and bringing him in this game is a great option. In some cases, there is Ashwin, who has also been sitting out, who has great quality as well,” the head coach said. “Many different permutations and combinations. I wouldn’t want to give too much away. I mean, we are pretty clear on what our playing 11 is tomorrow.”
That Surya is being looked at No. 6 to fill in Pandya’s spot was understood as Dravid said: “It may be a middle-over role — so we will just have to see which one we want to... we are pretty clear about the kind of roles that people can play.
“So, if you are looking for someone who might be a bit of an enforcer for us in the lower middle order, then Surya is certainly someone who can do that. With inputs from PTI
Today’s match: India vs NZ, 2pm, Dharamsala, live on Star Sports & Disney+ Hotstar