India will hope to stake their favourites to win the 2022 T20 World Cup when they take on minnows Netherlands in their second Super 12 match in Perth on Thursday, October 27. India secured a hard-fought victory over Pakistan in their first game, while the Netherlands fought hard but were unable to break down Bangladesh, losing by nine runs in their first Super 12 fixture of the tournament.
Ahead of the game, former India skipper Sunil Gavaskar was of the opinion that Deepak Hooda should be promoted up the batting ladder in case star all-rounder Hardik Pandya is ruled out or rested because of an injury. "If Hardik’s got a bit of a niggle, it makes sense to rest him. Because, on Sunday, against South Africa, it’s going to be a big game. So, anybody who has got a bit of a niggle, you can get them a little fresh for the Sunday game.
But again, it is a T20 format and you do not want to take any teams lightly. I would like Mohammad Shami to come and bowl because he has played very little cricket. I do believe he should come in and practice," Gavaskar said in an exclusive interview with Sports Tak.
Hardik, who bagged three wickets and scored 40 runs against Pakistan on the way to the win, believes that Hooda should play for India in Hardik's absence, "The Netherlands might not be as formidable as Pakistan and South Africa but India cannot relax against anybody. If Hardik Pandya is not there, you have Dinesh Karthik coming in at number 5, and that’s why I believe that you should bring in Deepak Hooda and bat him at number 5," he said.
'Only concern really is Rohit Sharma'
Gavaskar also voiced his concern on the form of India skipper Rohit Sharma, who has been enduring a lean patch in recent times, "The only concern really has been that Rohit Sharma of late has not quite scored with the same capability we know him to. I think if he gets going it really makes people’s life really easy for people to follow," Gavaskar said.
He also expects Rohit to start to provide a platform for the Indian batters to perform, "A good platform is what everyone looks at. You give a good platform, a good start and it makes that much easier for somebody coming down at four or five to start hitting the ball from the first ball. They don’t have to give themselves time to settle in, they don't have to give themselves time to steady the ship like India had to do against Pakistan when they were four wickets down for 31.
So, even if you get a slightly slower start, maybe get to about 40 after losing 1 wicket, that is a much better platform than 31/4," Gavaskar concluded.
