NEW DELHI:
BCCI
announced its 15-man India squad on Tuesday for the upcoming
T20 World Cup
, set to be hosted in West Indies and USA from June 2 to June 29 this year.
Former Indian cricketer
Madan Lal
, however, has expressed concerns over India's bowling attack for the upcoming T20 World Cup, particularly the inclusion of
Arshdeep Singh
and
Mohammed Siraj
in the main lineup.
While the batting section in the preliminary squad boasts names such as
Rohit Sharma
,
Virat Kohli
, Yashasvi Jaiswal, and Suryakumar Yadav, the pace attack features Arshdeep,
Jasprit Bumrah
, and Siraj, with Rahul Dravid and co. opting for Khaleel Ahmed and Avesh Khan in the reserves.
The 1983 World Cup-winning all-rounder believes that the pace attack, aside from Jasprit Bumrah, is not strong enough.
In an exclusive chat with TimesofIndia.com, Lal said, "I don't like the pace attack. Other than Jasprit Bumrah, it’s not that good. Siraj has done well (here and there), but his performances at the international level have been patchy. I think India are going weaker on the pacer side."
Moreover, Lal maintains that this bowling line-up will heavily rely on Bumrah for wickets and match-winning performances. He emphasized the importance of having a potent pace attack, stating, "Not only in T20 cricket, you need a good pacer who can get you the wickets to win matches. Bumrah is a wicket-taker and a match-winner. Let's see how Siraj performs. Otherwise, India will rely on Bumrah a lot. The problem is that India should've got another pacer.
"If you look at the history, India performed well only when they had a good pace attack. Only then, they won a lot of matches. But I am not sure about Arshdeep, nor am I sure about Siraj. Pandya is not that effective either. I think the team management has taken a chance on him. The pace line-up is the weak link. Apart from Bumrah, we have to see how Siraj and Arshdeep bowl," continued the 73-year-old.
Lal's concerns about the bowling attack were evident when he told TimesofIndia.com, "Looking at the bowling side, I am not getting that much confidence."
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When asked about his preferred choice for the bowling attack, Lal advocated for the inclusion of current Sunrisers Hyderabad death-over specialist
Thangarasu Natarajan
, stating, "If I had a chance (to pick one), I would've picked Natarajan. I would have vouched for him because he is a good bowler at the death. Mayank Yadav is too young. Yes, he bowls at a good pace, but the thing is whether he could keep doing it or not. But Natarajan has been doing it in every game."
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