"As far as I know, it's not a debate" - Ravichandran Ashwin feels Virat Kohli should not be demoted to No. 3 in IND vs SA 2024 T20 World Cup final
Ravichandran Ashwin has suggested that demoting Virat Kohli in the 2024 T20 World Cup final between India and South Africa won't be right. He suggested that the Men in Blue should avoid making changes in the summit clash, given that they've been unbeaten in the tournament.
Kohli's form has been under the scanner following a string of underwhelming performances. The seasoned campaigner has scored just 75 runs from seven outings at an average of 10.71 in the edition.
Reckoning that the team management is unlikely to change Kohli's batting position in the final, here's what Ashwin said on his YouTube channel:
"Everyone is saying that we should open Jaiswal, instead of Dube and play Virat No. 3. Why fix something that's not broken? Rishabh is playing in No.3. As far as I know, it's not a debate."
Robin Uthappa, who was also part of the discussion on Ashwin's YouTube channel, emphasized that there was no need to tinker with the winning combination.
"No chance, bro. If someone has played cricket at a high level, he knows how important the energy of a group is. Especially when you come into a final. You don't want to fix. You don't want to break anything. What has taken you till that point, you want to back that," he remarked.
The 2024 T20 World Cup final between India and South Africa will be played at Kensington Oval in Barbados on Saturday, June 29. The game kicks off at 8:00 PM (IST).
"He is a big match player" - Robin Uthappa backs Virat Kohli to play a match-winning knock in the 2024 T20 World Cup final
Robin Uthappa hailed Virat Kohli as a big-match player and backed him to do the job for Team India in the all-important 2024 T20 World Cup final. He predicted that the ace batter would score a half-century, and could also very well remain unbeaten.
Highlighting that Kohli will be keen to deliver in the crucial encounter, Uthappa said in the same video:
"I'm going to go out on a limb and say that Virat is going to play a match-winning in this game. For me, he is a big match player. There is no bigger match. As far as I know, you won't get a bigger match like this in T20 cricket. You get it once in two years. It's the biggest game in T20 cricket that happens once in two years. So, there is no bigger stage for a big player like Virat Kohli to go out there and set the world alight. So, I'm backing Virat to get a 50-plus score. Maybe even a not-out score in this game."
Virat Kohli shone with the bat when India last played a T20 World Cup final, scoring 77 runs off 58 balls against Sri Lanka. However, his knock went in vain as the Men in Blue suffered a heartbreaking six-wicket loss.