Veteran wicketkeeper-batter Dinesh Karthik has picked his India XI for the upcoming three-match ODI series vs West Indies, starting with the first game in Barbadon on Thursday. As far as the team combination is concerned, Karthik picked two frontline pacers and two specialist spinners, with five quality batting options. With India set to host the ODI World Cup later this year, Karthik feels that the three-match series will be the most crucial leg of the ongoing West Indies tour.
Karthik feels Suryakumar Yadav should be part of the Indian team for the World Cup.
“For me, the biggest person who can take home a lot in terms of confidence and in terms of giving confidence to the selectors as well, and as someone who is a world-class player but strangely hasn’t put a mark in ODI cricket, is Suryakumar Yadav. He has had quite a lean run, in the last series against Australia, he got three ducks, and post that, we also saw what he can do in the IPL. He is somebody who can take the game away in a whiff of a breath. That is how special he is. He is, in my mind, one of the best T20 players, and I have no doubt that he should be part of the World Cup squad,” Karthik said on Cricbuzz.
The wicketkeeper-batter also suggested that Yuzvendra Chahal needs to make a mark in the ODI series, especially with Kuldeep Yadav slightly ahead of him in the pecking order.
“He (Chahal) has been very sporadic with the amount of games he has played. He has hardly played many games. I think, if I am right, he has only played around five since the last one year. That is not too much to take home about. But he is fighting with Kuldeep now, who has probably just gone ahead of him. But there is always a battle between both the spinners,” he added.
Dinesh Karthik’s India XI for West Indies ODIs:
Rohit Sharma (c), Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, Suryakumar Yadav, Hardik Pandya (vc), Ishan Kishan (wk), Ravindra Jadeja, Yuzvendra Chahal, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammed Siraj, Umran Malik
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