WI vs IND | Street-smart and canny Krunal Pandya should be given ODI opportunities, says VVS Laxman
Former India cricketer VVS Laxman put his weight behind all-rounder Krunal Pandya and urged the selectors to include him in India's ODI squad. The senior of the Pandya brothers won the player of the series award in India’s clean sweep of West Indies in the recently concluded T20I series.
Despite displaying his all-round abilities on multiple occasions – for Mumbai Indians in the IPL and India in T20Is – Krunal is yet to receive the promotion to the 50-over squad. Even in the ongoing Caribbean tour, which the selectors are using as a platform to kick start the revamp for the next World Cup, the 28-year-old has not been tried out in ODIs. Laxman, who served as a member of the now-defunct CAC panel, begs to differ on this matter.
"The older Pandya is street-smart and canny, capable of thinking on his feet. I would love to see him get more opportunities in 50-over cricket too because I believe he can slot in at the No. 6 position and can offer a full complement of 10 overs," Laxman wrote in a column for TOI, reported Cricket Next.
However, the batting legend was all praise for the selectors and the team management for proving their trust in the youth system through the T20I series. Laxman noted how the major contributions generally came from the newcomers.
"The man of the match awards (in the three T20s against the West Indies) went to Navdeep Saini, Krunal Pandya and Deepak Chahar, which is a testament to the Indian system that prepares players for the rigours and challenges of the international arena. Most hearteningly, these players believed in themselves and played to their strengths. Saini is an express pace bowler, and that's exactly how he bowled," Laxman said.
He further added the promising performances of the young talents will help remove the constant pressure on seniors like Jasprit Bumrah or Bhuvneshwar Kumar.
"It's not fair or wise to rely only on Jasprit Bumrah or Bhuvneshwar Kumar to do the job all the time. What this series has proved is that India have other weapons in their arsenal. But these players need to play more games so that they grow into their roles, become comfortable and therefore attain the consistency that they are capable of," Laxman said.
