NEW DELHI:
Irfan Pathan
, a former all-rounder for India, stated that
Hardik Pandya
and
Shivam Dube
will have distinct responsibilities in the 2024
T20 World Cup
for India.
The 2007 World Cup winner believes that both Pandya and Dube will have the chance to showcase their finishing skills, with Pandya being the first-choice pick and Dube coming in at the tournament's knockout stage.
This is despite the ongoing discussion over which player should be included in India's starting XI.
Pandya led the Mumbai Indians through a difficult season, but he had a miserable IPL campaign, scoring just 216 runs. Conversely, Dube scored 396 runs at a 162.29 strike rate with the Chennai Super Kings, including three half-centuries.
"The good thing about the Indian team now is that they will get a chance to be in form before the Super 8, as we will play teams who are not at the top level apart from Pakistan. This will give us the opportunity to perform and start feeling good. Once on the big stage, if you start feeling good, it's a different ball game altogether. I hope this happens," Pathan said at the Star Sports Press Room.
"Talking about the best finishing options for the Indian squad, I think Hardik Pandya and Shivam Dube will play different roles. Hardik will have a set role to finish the game, and Shivam Dube will play as a floater, at least in the playoffs, acting as an enforcer against the spinners. He will play that kind of role," he added.
In response to Pandya's decline in batting performance, the former cricket player suggested that he resume using a broader batting stance.
"We all know that Hardik's hitting ability has gone down, and that has happened because he probably wants to bat up the order. He used to have a bigger batting stance, a wider stance, which gives you a good base. But in the last 1.5 years, his stance has narrowed slightly. When you have that kind of stance, you have much more free movement, which you want when the ball is doing something, as far as technique is concerned. So, I really think if he wants to play that kind of role, he needs to go back to his original stance, with a wider stance, which will give him a great base for hitting," Pathan said.
Pandya picked 11 wickets, mostly in the back end of the IPL, and will be eyeing to continue his bowling form in the T20 pinnacle. The 39-year-old added that his bowling form in the later stage of the IPL will boost his confidence in the batting.
"Another thing, if he is bowling, he should get going the way he did in the last part of the IPL. It will help his batting as well because he primarily plays in the Indian team as a batting all-rounder rather than a bowling all-rounder. However, it works both ways; if you do well in one area, it boosts your confidence in the other. I've experienced this as an all-rounder. So, I'm confident that by the time the World Cup comes, he will sort out any issues with his hitting ability and play a major role in the tournament," the former all-rounder said.
(With IANS inputs)
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