Former India selector backs Virat to open in T20 WC, feels batter needed to groom youngsters after tournament

New Delhi [India], June 3 : Former Indian selector Sarandeep Singh said that star batter Virat Kohli should open for India in the ICC T20 World Cup and he is the type of player needed to groom youngsters for the future.
As India starts its ICC T20 World Cup campaign against Ireland on June 5 in New York, all eyes will be on Virat, who silenced all the chatter around his strike rate with a brilliant Indian Premier League (IPL) season 2024. He won the Orange Cap for the most runs in the season, scoring 741 runs in 15 matches at an average of 61.75 and a strike rate of over 154, with a century and five fifties. His best score of 113*.
Speaking to ANI ahead of India's campaign, Sarandeep said, "I have been saying this for a long time now that Virat Kohli should open with Rohit Sharma because Yashasvi is not in the best of form. So, you should not be in two minds on whether to play right and left combination when Yashasvi is not in form. You should play Virat Kohli as an opener because he can play the anchor role. He can score runs with a good strike rate in the first six overs and can bat till the end."
"So, Virat can open and Suryakumar Yadav can bat up the order and then you can make way for Shivam Dube who can bat at number four. Rishabh Pant at five, Hardik Pandya at six, Jadeja at 7, Kuldeep at 8. At number nine you can play Jasprit Bumrah who is a surety and then Arshdeep Singh the left-arm pacer who can swing the ball well and bowl wicket-taking deliveries. All this can make a perfect playing eleven. So, you can add a fast bowler or maybe Axar Patel," he added, constructing a perfect playing eleven for India.
"If you think that this is their (Rohit and Virat) last T20 World Cup then you are putting too much pressure on them. The way Virat Kohli is performing, his fitness level is amazing. You need a player like him to groom the youngsters. I do not think that he is taking retirement if one format like T20 whether they want to go ahead or not it is their call. We need both of them," he added.
On India's campaign opener against Ireland, Sarandeep said that no team should be taken lightly as on their day, they can win the game and Ireland has won some games lately. He also said that the recent games between both the sides have been competitive so India needs to be a little careful. Sarandeep said that Hardik Pandya's form as an all-rounder is going to be crucial as he is the backbone of the team.
"We saw in the practice game Virat did not play. You opened with Sanju Samson. Rohit Sharma is not in form but the good thing is that Rishabh Pant is in good form, Suryakumar Yadav showed some good form and the way Hardik Pandya batted was good. So, his form is very important for India during the World Cup because the middle order is the backbone of the team Hardik Pandya is the backbone of your team. He has played well but you are playing on drop-in wickets," said Sarandeep.
The former selector also said that the ground is soft and one needs to run hard, leading to a risk of injuries to the back and ankle.
"Therefore, there are more injuries. One needs to focus on a lot of things and I feel that the first match you are playing against Ireland or UAE your best eleven should play from the first match and that should be your playing eleven throughout the tournament," he concluded.
India will start their T20 World Cup campaign on June 5 against Ireland at the newly constructed Nassau County International Cricket Stadium in New York.
The blockbuster clash between India and Pakistan will take place on June 9. India will later play tournament co-hosts USA (June 12) and Canada (June 15) to wrap up their Group A matches.
In the tournament, India will be aiming to end their ICC trophy drought, having last won the ICC Champions Trophy in 2013. Since then, India has reached the 50-over World Cup final in 2023, semifinal in 2015 and 2019, the title clash of the ICC World Test Championship in 2021 and 2023, T20 WC final in 2014, semifinals in 2016 and 2022 but failed to secure a big ICC trophy.
India squad: Rohit Sharma (C), Hardik Pandya (VC), Yashasvi Jaiswal, Virat Kohli, Suryakumar Yadav, Rishabh Pant (WK), Sanju Samson (WK), Shivam Dube, Ravindra Jadeja, Axar Patel, Kuldeep Yadav, Yuzvendra Chahal, Arshdeep Singh, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohd. Siraj
Reserves: Shubman Gill, Rinku Singh, Khaleel Ahmed and Avesh Khan.