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Former India captain and head coach, Ravi Shastri has named a bunch of young Indian batters who might find a place in Team India's squad for the 2023 ODI World Cup. Shastri didn't hesitate in naming Rajasthan Royals' opening batter Yashasvi Jaiswal, who has been the biggest storyline of the ongoing edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL). The cricketer-turned-pundit underlined the drastic improvement in Jaiswal's game from last season and how the young Mumbai batter has taken big strides this year.
"One is (Yashasvi) Jaiswal, simply because of the way he's played this season," Shastri said in the latest episode of the ICC Review.
"And for me it is a marked improvement from what I saw from him last year, which is a very, very positive sign.
"It shows that there's a young guy prepared to work on his game, sort out things, get a more all-round game into play and he's done that this season. Just the power with which he's re-taking shots. Just the pockets he's hitting around the ground as opposed to last year is very good," he added.
Another batter, according to Shaastri, who is in the mix is Kolkata Knight Riders' middle-order batter Rinku Singh, who has evolved as a match-winner for his franchise with the bat. The left-handed batter has won multiple matches for KKR this season with his explosive stroke-making and unfettering grit.
"The other bloke is Rinku Singh, which is a great story. The more I see of him, that guy has got a fabulous temperament. He's tough as nails. Both these guys have come through very hard backgrounds. They've worked very hard initially in their lives and nothing's come easy for them. So you can see that hunger, that passion, that drive that is so needed to make it to the top."
Shastri also named wicketkeeper-batter Jitesh Sharma and left-handed batter Sai Sudharsan, who have impressed this season with the bat. But with his third pick, Shastri went with Mumbai Indians' middle-order batter Tilak Varma, who with his attractive and belligerent game, has caught the attention of everyone.
"As far as batting goes, there's Tilak Varma, there's Jitesh Sharma from Punjab (Kings) too who is a wicket-keeper-batter who's pretty dangerous and has stood out," Shastri noted.
"There's even Sai Sudarshan, a left-handed batter.
"But I would put Tilak Varma, I would put Jaiswal, I'd put Rinku Singh. (They) are the candidates who can really push through along with Ruturaj Gaikwad, who's been around for a while.
"These are the guys who can push for selection, depending on their form closer to the World Cup. And depending on injuries. If there are injuries to any key players, then these guys can come straight away into the mix," he concluded.
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