’If Virat Kohli could bowl...’: Irfan Pathan points out India’s ’handicap’ ahead of T20 World Cup 2024

Rohit Sharma-led Team India will kick off their campaign for the T20 World Cup 2024 against Ireland on June 5. However, ahead of their official start to the tournament, the Men in Blue have received a warning from former India all-rounder Irfan Pathan.

Speaking to Star Sports, Pathan suggested that Yashasvi Jaiswal, along with all-rounder Shivam Dube, should find a place in India's playing XI given that no other top-order Indian batsman is bowling. Notably, Jaiswal has bowled in the nets and India's bowling coach had earlier suggested the youngster could get some opportunities with the ball.

Talking about the Indian team combinations for the World Cup, Pathan said, “With the selected team, there can be two combinations. In one combination, you can play with six bowlers, including Axar Patel, to deepen the batting lineup. In the other combination, you can play with four front-line bowlers and expect Shivam Dube and Hardik Pandya to bowl. Another option for Team India is a young player who bowls in the nets but hasn’t bowled in matches, Yashasvi Jaiswal. Shivam Dube also mentioned during the IPL that he has been regularly bowling in the nets, preparing to bowl one or two overs in the World Cup,"

Pathan also said that the other top-order batsmen in the Indian team - Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli and Suryakumar Yadav - were a bit of a handicap for the team as they do not bowl.

"If Hardik can give you the option of bowling three to four overs, this problem will be largely solved. Our other batsmen, like Rohit, Virat, or Suryakumar Yadav, can’t bowl, which makes us somewhat handicapped. Ideally, if any of these players could bowl, it would greatly benefit the team. We talk about Australia, but even England has many all-rounders among their top seven players, including Moeen Ali, Liam Livingstone, and Will Jacks. It’s always better to have more bowling options, and yes, in this scenario, we are definitely handicapped.” Pathan added.