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Australia's legendary captain Ricky Ponting wants the Indian team management to do away with match-ups and field their ‘best XI’ for the must-win Zimbabwe Super 8 clash in the ongoing ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026. Ponting addressed the criticism head coach Gautam Gambhir and skipper Suryakumar Yadav have been facing for benching vice-captain Axar Patel. He thinks that rather than match-ups, it is how the captain uses his bowlers.
“Listening to the commentary, the reason Axar didn’t play (against South Africa) is because of the left handers in the opposition side. But there's still some right handers there. It just comes down to the art of the captain of being able to use Axar at the right time,” Ponting said on the ICC Review.
Ponting wants Kuldeep in playing XI
Ponting wants the team management to pick the team on the basis of what the conditions offer at the MA Chidambaram Stadium, Chennai. In addition, he feels that left-arm chinaman bowler Kuldeep Yadav is perfect for match-ups as he can spin the ball into and away from the batters.
“I would be going back to the basics. I'd be just looking at their lineup. Who's our best XI for the conditions in Chennai?” added the two-time ODI World Cup-winning captain.
“If that has Axar Patel in it, great. If it has Kuldeep Yadav in it, that's the other one that I'd be thinking about bringing back because it doesn't matter with him if it's left-hand or right-hand. He can bowl wrong ones and spin the ball away from the left-hand outside edge of both those batters.”
Patel and Axar in T20 World Cup so far
Patel has been slotted down the order. He hasn’t got too many deliveries to capitalise. With the ball, he claimed six wickets from three games at the group stage. He missed the game against Netherlands as well.
On the other hand, the wrist spinner played just one game when he replaced Arshdeep Singh in the lineup against Pakistan on a spin-friendly track of R.Premadasa Stadium.
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