Irfan Pathan the exIndian cricketer couldnt help but be intrigued by the strategic move of sending Rishabh Pant to bat at No. 3 during the T20 World Cup 2024 warmup match against Bangladesh. Pant in his remarkable return to the Indian team smashed a brilliant 53 runs from just 32 deliveries.
Irfan Pathan openly shared his preference for India to commence with Yashasvi Jaiswal proposing that the duo of Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli opening followed by Pant at No.3 could in fact prove to be a rather ingenious strategy.
Irfan Pathan named his starting XI in a video posted by Star Sports before of India’s first game against Ireland on June 5. Here is what he said regarding the top order and Rishabh Pant’s role:
“I love the idea of Rishabh Pant at No.3 because you will get the option of a left-hander. If Pant bats in the powerplay with just two fielders outside the circle, then the way he is trapped on the off-side won’t be possible. He could really come into his own at No.3.”
Irfan Pathan
Irfan then chose Suryakumar Yadav, Ravindra Jadeja, and seam-bowling all-rounders Shivam Dube and Hardik Pandya. In a previous appearance on Star Sports, the former cricketer outlined how Dube and Hardik might play distinct yet productive roles for the Men in Blue.
Irfan Pathan on India’s bowling attack
Irfan Pathan believes the Men in Blue may sacrifice their batting depth against Ireland in the circumstances found in the United States and field three out-and-out pacers in Jasprit Bumrah, Arshdeep Singh, and Mohammed Siraj with Kuldeep Yadav’s left-arm wrist spin.
He believes that three spinners would be more effective when India travels to the West Indies in the later rounds of the competition. Pathan stated during the same segment:
“I would like to see Kuldeep Yadav at No.8 and then the three specialist fast bowlers because we are playing in the USA. The moment this team goes to the West Indies, you can make it two specialist pacers and bring in Axar Patel at No.8 to deepen the batting.”
Irfan Pathan