3 players who can potentially replace Hardik Pandya in India's playing 11 vs New Zealand ft. Suryakumar Yadav
Team India fans wait with bated breath as talismanic all-rounder Hardik Pandya has been sent for scans following his left ankle injury against Bangladesh in Pune on October 19.
The injury transpired midway through Hardik's first over, the ninth over of the contest when he tried to stop a boundary on his follow-through. The 30-year-old grimaced with pain and limped off the field immediately, leaving Virat Kohli to complete the over.
While the exact nature of the injury and his participation going forward is yet to be confirmed, the absence of Hardik leaves a void almost impossible to fill. With the ability to pick up timely wickets and finish off games with the bat, replacing Hardik Pandya will be a severe headache for the team management.
In the ongoing World Cup, he has already showcased his value with five wickets at an impressive 22.60 average. Apart from the raw numbers, the balance provided by the all-rounder to the playing XI makes him invaluable.
Yet, should Hardik be ruled out of India's next game against New Zealand in Dharamsala, it may not be all doom and gloom for the Men in Blue. There is a possible silver lining being the opportunity for others who have been warming the benches.
With that in mind, let us look at three players who can potentially replace Hardik Pandya in India's playing 11 against New Zealand.
#1 Suryakumar Yadav
The perfect like-to-like replacement from a batting perspective for Hardik Pandya is his former Mumbai Indians teammate Suryakumar Yadav. While playing Suryakumar might mean India will have to play a more specialist bowler like Mohammed Shami instead of Shardul Thakur or Ravichandran Ashwin, the batting department should not suffer much.
Although the 33-year-old struggled in ODIs until recently, he seemed to have found his own in the finisher's role at No.6 in India's recent 2-1 series win over Australia. Suryakumar scored a crucial 49-ball 50 in a tight run chase during the first ODI at Mohali and followed that with an innings of complete contrast in the subsequent game at Indore.
The swashbuckling entered with the platform laid out and took India to a massive 399/5 with his knock of 72* from 37 deliveries. With his uncanny ability to innovate shots out of nowhere, Suryakumar batting at No.6 will only further intimidate the opposition bowlers of the vaunted Indian batting lineup.
#2 Ishan Kishan
Ishan Kishan's selection to the Indian World Cup squad was for his unique ability to open the batting, bat in the middle order, and keep wickets. It made him the premium replacement option should an injury arise to any batter in the lineup.
In that sense, the southpaw could replace Hardik Pandya and be a floater that provides the lone left-hander in the Indian top six. Particularly against New Zealand, Kishan's inclusion in place of Hardik could prove to be more handy considering the dual left-arm spinners- Mitchell Santner and Rachin Ravindra in the Kiwi lineup,
The 25-year-old played India's opening two games against Australia and Afghanistan as an opener in the absence of Shubman Gill. Hence, the World Cup stage and atmosphere shouldn't be intimidating for the youngster should he feature against New Zealand.
In the recent Asia Cup, Kishan batted at No.5 against Pakistan, with his left-handedness proving valuable against the Pakistan spinners. He scored a sensational 82 off 81 deliveries to resurrect the Indian innings from 48/3 to 266.
The Bihar-born cricketer also smashed a quickfire 31 off 18 at No.5 in the second ODI against Australia, further evidence of Kishan's ability to tackle the middle overs.
With almost half his batting stints coming at No. 4 and 5 in ODIs, Kishan should feel at home in the Indian middle-order or lower middle-order. While his selection will again mean India will have only five specialist bowlers in the playing XI, they can always replace Thakur with Shami or Ashwin.
Also, in Suryakumar and Kishan's case, having an innings or two under their belt should the need arise later at the critical stages of the tournament is where Hardik's absence could serve as a blessing in disguise.
#3 Ravichandran Ashwin
In the build-up to each outing of Team India, the constant discussion has been on who plays at No.8 between Ravichandran Ashwin and Shardul Thakur.
Hardik Pandya's absence could see both bowling all-rounders feature in the playing XI should India want more cover in their bowling department. The move will mean Ravindra Jadeja bats at No.6 in the batting order, with Ashwin and Thakur to follow at No. 7 and 8.
Considering Jadeja's improved batting prowess and Team India's in-form top order, it may be worthwhile to have six bowling options available. The fact that the left-arm spin-bowling all-rounder hasn't yet batted in the World Cup indicates the form displayed by the top five.
It could also help India to have a left-handed option in the top six to tackle New Zealand's twin left-arm spinners. With an overall ODI average of over 32 that increases to 34.20 at No.6 and having constantly performed a similar role in the IPL, Jadeja is more than capable of being the finisher for Team India.
The same applies to Ashwin, who boasts an incredible five Test centuries and has scored his solitary ODI half-century at No.7.
With Dharamsala usually favoring the batters, it may be worthwhile for the Indian management to consider this seemingly left-field option.