3 changes India can consider for 5th T20I vs Zimbabwe ft. Riyan Parag
Team India's tour of Zimbabwe is coming to a close with the fifth T20I of the series at the Harare Sports Club on Sunday, July 14. The Men in Blue have already claimed an unassailable 3-1 lead, and more importantly, have ticked off their list as to what they wanted to achieve in the series.
However, largely through no fault of their own, there are some areas that still needs some focus. For instance, the middle order has hardly spent time out in the middle, and while all players in the squad have availed a chance, not all of them have had the opportunity to showcase their skills.
On that note, let us take a look at three changes India can consider for fifth T20I vs Zimbabwe.
#1 Riyan Parag for Ruturaj Gaikwad
The current batting unit, the one which has been in use for the last couple of matches has incredible depth, perhaps a bit too much. The principle reason behind this has been because of four opening batters holding the top four slots in the batting lineup.
All four of Yashasvi Jaiswal, Shubman Gill, Ruturaj Gaikwad, and Abhishek Sharma have had their moments in the series already, and with the series already in the bag, it makes sense for the bench players to have a chance or the unexposed middle orders being promoted.
Since Jaiswal missed the first two matches as part of the 2024 T20 World Cup triumph festivities, he is unlikely to lose his place for the series finale. Gill is also undroppable being the skipper of the side.
As a result, Ruturaj Gaikwad is the frontrunner to find himself out of the playing XI having played all four matches in the series so far. The right-handed batter has had his moments with a couple of impactful knocks taking him into the top 10 rankings for T20I batters.
Riyan Parag is a candidate who can slot into No.4 being a genuine middle-order batter on the bench at the moment. The all-rounder played the first couple of matches in the series, but could only score two runs on his debut, and got to bowl only a solitary over so far.
#2 Mukesh Kumar for Khaleel Ahmed
India have utilized all four pacers they brought on the tour, with Tushar Deshpande making his debut in the recent fourth T20I in place of Avesh Khan.
Since Avesh Khan and Khaleel Ahmed have played three matches each in the series already, and the trophy also clinched, the final T20I proves to be an opportunity to bring Mukesh Kumar back into the mix. The right-arm pacer was part of the playing XI for the first two matches, where he picked up four wickets, including figures of 3-37 in the second contest.
The pace bowling pair of Mukesh Kumar and Tushar Deshpande does come across as a bit one-dimensional, but it strengthens the death bowling. Furthermore, with so many all-rounders in the mix, India can be a bit bold with their changes in the bowling department.
#3 Dhruv Jurel for Abhishek Sharma
The incredibly left-field option is unfair to Abhishek Sharma based on the way he has started his journey in international cricket. However, if the left-handed batter and Ruturaj Gaikwad are dropped for the contest, it will give the unexposed middle order a chance at some game time.
The vacant positions at No.3 and No.4 can be filled in by Sanju Samson and Riyan Parag, the roles they already hold with the Rajasthan Royals (RR) in the 2024 Indian Premier League (IPL).
With Samson going up the order, it gives Jurel an opportunity to bat alongside Rinku Singh and Shivam Dube in the lower middle-order, if it comes to that. The wicketkeeper-batter had an uneventful debut in the series opener (6 off 14), and did not avail the chance to bat in the second match.