Ravindra Jadeja or Mohammed Siraj - who should India drop if they pick Kuldeep Yadav for 2024 T20 World Cup clash vs Afghanistan? 

India have arrived in the West Indies and will take on Afghanistan in their first Super Eight encounter of the ongoing 2024 T20 World Cup in Bridgetown, Barbados. India will also face Bangladesh and Australia in this round for a place in the semifinals.

Afghanistan have been a side to watch out for in this competition and since the conditions suit their style of play, they could well trip Rohit Sharma and Co. In this format and these conditions, Afghanistan's bowling is their most important asset, but they will need to be at their absolute best to boss India. Hence, a lot of this pressure will then be shifted to their batters, who will have to step up after the disappointment against the West Indies.

As has been the case with all India matches, this game will also start at 8pm IST (10.30am local time), which means that there will be no impact of dew and slower bowlers will come to the fore. However, pitches will be far better for batters as opposed to the conditions that they faced in New York. A high-scoring game is anticipated, with the outcome likely hinging on how well the Indian batters manage Afghanistan's spinners.

While so much focus is on the Afghan bowling, India have a few issues to sort out themselves. For starters, they need to figure out a way to include Kuldeep Yadav and if they do so, they need to decide which player makes way for him. Axar Patel has done enough to keep his place. Hence, the toss-up will be between Ravindra Jadeja and Mohammed Siraj.

Ravindra Jadeja or Mohammed Siraj - Who does India play?

Jadeja's batting could work in his favour [Getty Images]

After 11 seasons of the Caribbean Premier League (CPL), numbers and ball tracking suggest that spinners who dart the ball in at pace have better results compared to slower bowlers in the West Indies.

Should India look at Kuldeep, who has increased his pace considerably over the last 15 months, they could bench Siraj and continue playing with Jadeja. Both Axar and Jadeja target the stumps, bowl at pace and provide control when needed.

Moreover, Afghanistan are expected to have only two left-hand batters in their top eight - another important dynamic that could convince the Indian management to go with Jadeja and Axar.

Now, numbers from the Kensington Oval in the ongoing World Cup paint a different picture. Out of the 61 wickets to fall here so far, the pacers have picked up 40. More importantly, the right-arm pacers have taken 27 out of the 61 wickets, and wrist spinners have been the more successful among slower bowlers.

Hence, India could opt to play Kuldeep considering his variations and wicket-taking abilities, with Siraj also keeping his place and Jadeja missing out.

On the other hand, Bridgetown has seen good weather conditions so far and batting has been comparatively easier. The venue has also seen one 200-plus score this season. This could prompt India to keep Jadeja as an extra batter and include Kuldeep as the third spinner. With Hardik being the third seamer in the side, Siraj could be the unlucky one to miss out.

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