Mumbai: Former Indian skipper Sourav Ganguly feels that it is too early to say as to whether the spin combination of Kuldeep Yadav and Yuzvendra Chahal would be a permanent one in India’s limited overs’ setup. He also said that the duo, who have great so far still needs to perform outside the subcontinent
“There is talk about how Kuldeep Yadav and Chahal have played a good part in India’s victory and questions are been raised about the future of Ashwin and Jadeja in the shorter versions. No doubt Kuldeep and Chahal have bowled well but in Indian conditions, spinners generally do well. It is too early to comment about the two as they still have to express their skill in conditions outside India,” wrote Ganguly, in a column for The Times of India.
Ashwin and Jadeja have been instrumental in India’s rise to the number one position in Test cricket. The duo played a crucial role in India’s gruelling home season last year and also helped India attain series wins in the Caribbean and in Sri Lanka.
Of late, they have been rested from the limited overs’ side while the Chahal-Kuldeep duo has taken up the burden of the handling the spin department beautifully. The duo played a key role in the 5-0 hammering of Sri Lanka which was followed by the 4-1 thrashing of Australia at home.
Ganguly also heaved praise on Hardik Pandya who has impressed everyone with his all-round performances. As a matter of fact, Indian skipper Virat Kohli termed his rise as the, ‘biggest positive’ for Indian cricket. The former Indian skipper too feels along the same lines when he wrote, “India dominated the series in all aspects against Australia, except a few blemishes here and there. The biggest plus for me has been Hardik Pandya. He has shown progression in his game and in the last few months has evolved as one more match-winner.”
He added, “He has natural talent and good temperament both while batting and bowling. He will need to keep on channelizing this in the right direction over a period of time.”
The likes of Kedar Jadhav and Manish Pandey didn’t have a good series against Australia according to their standards but Ganguly feels that they should be persisted with.
He wrote, “The likes of Manish Pandey and Kedar Jadhav also need to be handled carefully. I know there has been some talk about the two, but Virat Kohli has done the right thing by persisting with them. When you give youngsters a chance you have to be patient with them, and it will eventually give you dividends.”
The 45-year-old also said that Ajinkya Rahane needs to be kept in line for the opener’s slot in T20I’s as well.
“Ajinkya Rahane has made the most of whatever opportunity he has got but I am sure, he too must have felt the pinch at missing out on a few hundreds. Rahane needs to be kept in the loop as an opener for T20s also because he definitely has value at the top,” Ganguly wrote.
India would next play against New Zealand in three ODIs and as many T20Is, beginning in Mumbai from October 22.