India have backed their senior players to do well in the impending T20 World Cup 2024, but Sanjay Manjrekar noted that the move hasn't paid dividends in previous editions for the Men in Blue.
The legendary duo of Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma played in the T20I series against Afghanistan in January. This marked their return to the shortest format of the game for India for the first time since the 2022 T20 World Cup. Before this series, there were speculations that Kohli and Rohit could be left out of the squad for this year's marquee event in the West Indies and the USA, and Hardik Pandya could take the captaincy. However, the BCCI eventually went with experience, as they named both the talismanic right-handed batters in the 15-man squad.
Former India cricketer Manjrekar said he would have picked a much younger squad for the World Cup had he been the selector. By selecting both Kohli and Rohit in the team, the cricketer-turned-commentator feels that India have deprived themselves of a chance to have a left-right combination at the top.
"Ideally, I would not have gone that way; I would have stuck with a slightly more younger kind of, core set of players but the selectors have committed themselves to the icons, Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli. Now that they are in the squad, it's impossible to have Virat Kohli batting at No. 3 because then you don't get the full rally of Virat. Rohit Sharma has to open, so now, India in a way have forced themselves to have only one kind of combination — two right-handers," Manjrekar said on Star Sports' Press Room World Cup edition on Friday.
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Manjrekar opined that the explosive left-handed opener, Yashasvi Jaiswal, will have to warm the bench if Kohli and Rohit open for the inaugural champions.
"Unfortunately, Jaiswal will have to sit out. I would have gone completely with a new lot (and) then he would have had a lot more flair and it would be something different. (But) India have trusted the seniors a move that hasn't worked over the years let's hope it works this time," Manjrekar stated.
While Kohli finished as the leading run-getter in the recently concluded Indian Premier League, Rohit struggled to live up to his lofty standards. However, the Indian captain scored a sparkling century in his last T20I appearance for India against the Afghans. Indian fans would want their two senior statesmen to excel in the T20 World Cup and end their 11-year wait for an ICC title.
India lock horns with age-old rivals Pakistan in the T20 World Cup on June 9 in New York. Manjrekar reckoned that it wouldn't be very difficult for India to get past the Men in Green in the highly-anticipated clash. The 58-year-old explained why left-arm pacers Mohammad Amir and Shaheen Afridi might not cause the same amount of trouble to the Indian batters as they did in previous meetings.
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"Mohammed Amir played his last international T20 seven years back. We have no idea what his form is like today. Shaheen Afridi is not the same bowler that he was two years ago. India have handled him really well, if you remember the Asia Cup, even in the 50-overs World Cup we had a one-sided match. I do not see Pakistan as a major threat to India, plus the names (of) Mohammed Amir and Shaheen Shah Afridi. I do not think this is a problem for India," Manjrekar noted.
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