Former Indian cricketer Irfan Pathan has backed Jitesh Sharma to play ahead of Ishan Kishan in the upcoming T20 World Cup 2024. He said it would be difficult for the left-hander to find a place because there is a logjam in the top order in the Indian team.
Currently, India is facing South Africa in the T20I series. The first game of the series was washed out by rain and the questions that existed before the first game are still there. The Indian combination for the series is the main talking point, especially with many interesting players in the team.
Another question that has been bothering many is who between Jitesh Sharma and Ishan Kishan will be in the goalkeeping XI. Both batsmen have been playing an amazing brand of cricket but only one of them can make the cut among the 11 players.
If Ishan Kishan has to play, the team needs to field him in the top three. But this would mean one of the top specialist hitters would have to make way for him. On the other hand, Jitesh Sharma bats in the lower order and can take on the bowlers from the 1 ball.
With all the questions unanswered so far, Irfan Pathan was asked about choosing between the duo for India’s T20 World Cup squad. In response to this, he backed Jitesh Sharma to play. He pointed out that Ishan Kishan needs time to get going and the right-hander should be there. Speaking to Star Sports, he explained:
“I will play with Jitesh without a doubt. I have maintained since before that if you have to play Ishan, be it ODIs or T20Is, you have to play him at the top, and there is a logjam at the top.
“It is very difficult for Ishan Kishan to carve a niche for himself. This is my belief. I don’t know at all what the team management thinks, but I have judged his ability for many years. I feel like he needs a new, hard ball and then plays well with spin.”
Jitesh Sharma is a slightly creative player – Irfan Pathan
Irfan Pathan went on to praise Jitesh Sharma, saying that the right-hander is a creative player and bats like Suryakumar Yadav. While he highlighted his impressive performances, the former Indian cricketer highlighted his astonishing strike rate against spinners and pacers. He added:
“When you bat in the middle order, you will get spin in front of you, and there you (Kishan) might struggle at times. Jitesh Sharma is a slightly creative player. He is a Suryakumar Yadav type player. You will see him playing the round and different types of shots.
“His growth in T20 cricket in the last year and a half has been fantastic. He has been playing the finisher’s role extremely well for the Punjab Kings in the IPL and recently played two very good innings (for India). His strike rate is always impressive and he plays well with both spin and fast bowling.”
Jitesh Sharma has been impressive for India in all three T20I innings. He has managed 64 runs at an exceptional strike rate of 164.10.
