Former Australian leg-spinner Brad Hogg has picked Rohit Sharma and skipper Virat Kohli as his two Indian openers for the upcoming T20 World Cup.
Brad Hogg Picked T20 WC Playing XI for India
Brad Hogg believes promoting Virat Kohli up the order will allow India to bring in more attacking players in the middle order. Earlier, Virat Kohli had announced his decision to open in T20Is after his match-winning 80 not out against England in the final T20I in Ahmedabad
“My Indian team going into the T20 World Cup would have Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma opening the batting. I might be a bit harsh on Shikhar Dhawan but they need some attacking players in the middle-order and so they need to push Kohli up the order,” Hogg said in his YouTube video.
“I have Suryakumar Yadav, a youngster to international cricket, at No.3. I think his versatility is going to add a bit of spice to that batting line-up. KL Rahul is the prime runner for the No.4 spot. Coming in at No.5 is Rishabh Pant and I would keep him as a floater. If there is a wicket falling in the seventh over, I would send him up the order at dominate against spin. I would have Hardik Pandya at No.6 and Ravindra Jadeja at No.7.”
As far as the bowling combination goes, Hogg feels it will be important to see who among Kuldeep Yadav and Yuzvendra Chahal would get the nod while sticking to the fast-bowling trio of Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Shardul Thakur, and Jasprit Bumrah.
Hogg picked Shardul Thakur, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, and Jasprit Bumrah as his fast bowling options. Hogg stated that he chose Shardul because of his ability to bat if necessary.
“If Kuldeep Yadav does well in Sri Lanka, having a left-arm wrist-spinner could be a point of difference. But at the moment, Chahal is the number one spinner. Someone like a Thakur could get an opportunity due to his explosive batting and he is also good in the powerplay and at the death. Then you got Bhuvi and then Bumrah,” Hogg pointed out.
Brad Hogg’s XI
Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, Suryakumar Yadav, KL Rahul, Rishabh Pant, Hardik Pandya, Ravindra Jadeja, Shardul Thakur, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Yuzvendra Chahal, Jasprit Bumrah.
