Asia Cup 2022: "You shouldn't rush him into the XI"- Danish Kaneria on KL Rahul's selection
Former Pakistan leg-spinner Danish Kaneria feels vice-captain KL Rahul has been rushed back into the Indian squad for the 2022 Asia Cup. The 30-year-old had suffered a groin injury after the IPL 2022 season and has been out of action since.
Rahul was set to make his comeback in the T20I series against West Indies, but that didn't happen either because he tested positive for COVID-19. Team management have made it clear that KL Rahul is an important part of their T20 World Cup plans by making him the vice-captain for the Asia Cup.
However, in a video posted on his YouTube channel, Danish Kaneria explained why Rahul should have taken a bit of time to get back into full flow. He said:
"Rahul hasn't played international cricket for a while, yet he has been picked ahead of Shreyas Iyer, Shubman Gill and Sanju Samson, who were playing continuously. Whenever a player is back from injury, you shouldn't rush him into the XI. He should have been given a bit of time to ease into the team as he is an important player for India in the T20 World Cup."
Mohammad Shami would have been a better option than Avesh Khan: Danish Kaneria
Danish Kaneria, of late, has been quite vocal about how expensive Avesh Khan has been in T20Is for India. Despite his Player of the Match performance in the fourth T20I against West Indies, Avesh leaked a lot of runs in the series.
The 41-year-old believes an experienced bowler like Mohammad Shami would have been ideal for Team India as the third pacer, with the likes of Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Arshdeep Singh likely to be a part of the playing XI. He stated:
"I was worried about their pace bowling because the injuries to Bumrah and Harshal meant that they were ruled out of the Asia Cup. Despite knowing that Avesh Khan can be expensive on the slow tracks in UAE, they have gone ahead with him. I feel Mohammad Shami could have been a much better option."
.🗣️ "If it was a race between Avesh Khan and Mohammed Shami, I'll go with Shami." - @cricketaakash
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Danish Kaneria reckons Jasprit Bumrah's injury makes Shami's exclusion even more baffling. He added:
"When a bowler like Bumrah, who carries the team, is injured, you need a senior pacer like Shami to provide support to Bhuvneshwar. If you wanted to try youngsters, you should have picked Umran Malik because as it is only two specialist pacers will play, from the kind of spin-heavy bowling line-up they have announced."
With just three specialist fast bowlers in their Asia Cup squad, will India feel the pinch of Bumrah's absence? Let us know in the comments.