ODI World Cup: Gautam Gambhir Warns India Against Suryakumar Yadav Gamble

India's squad for the ODI World Cup is set, with underfire players like KL Rahul and Suryakumar Yadav also fetching a spot each. While both batters have gone on to record impressive performances in recent outings, former India cricketer Gautam Gambhir isn't fancying Surya's inclusion in the ODI playing XI for the World Cup. Gambhir doesn't fancy frequent changes in the team and believes the playing XI should be settled almost for the entire World Cup. He also cited the example of India's 2011 World Cup-winning squad to prove his point.

Suryakumar is an explosive batter and his traits can come in handy to the Indian team in the death overs. Though there remain a few other batters ahead of him in the pecking order at present, Gambhir feels if Surya is to play, he should feature at the No. 6 or No. 7 spot, as a finisher.

"When you go for a World Cup, you generally have a fixed playing XI. You don't chop or change. Remember the 2011 World Cup, we hardly made any changes. Yusuf Pathan played 5-6 matches at the start and then it was Suresh Raina. If Suryakumar Yadav is in your first playing XI then I would want him to bat at 6-7, but the big question will then be who will bat at No. 5. Then Jadeja can bat at No. 5, Hardik at 6, and Suryakumar as finisher where he can bat in the final 15-20 overs.

"But it will be a huge gamble deciding whether you want Jadeja at No. 5 and Suryakumar, in the form that he is in ODI cricket, at No. 7. This would put a lot of responsibility on the top four," Gambhir said in a chat on Star Sports.

At present, the likes of Hardik Pandya and Ravindra Jadeja have been allotted the role of finishers. Being all-rounders, the two players remain pivotal to India's plans for the World Cup.

Topics mentioned in this article

India Cricket Team Suryakumar Yadav Gautam Gambhir Cricket