India vs Australia | Rest MS Dhoni against Australia, opines Hemang Badani

India and Australia are now playing a two-match T20I series which will be followed by a five-match ODI series. The ODI series will be the last international series for the Men in Blue before the World Cup which will be held in England and Wales on May 30 and this is the last chance to try out various players to select a final team.

In the first T20I, Virat Kohli went with three regular keepers – Dhoni, Karthik and Pant. Meanwhile, Badani has said that as Dhoni is the first choice keeper for the World Cup, India can try Karthik and Pant by resting Dhoni. Karthik has found a place only in the T20Is while Pant is in the Indian squad for the all the games of the ODI series as well.  

“Dhoni anyways is going to play the World Cup and is your first keeper. If you had asked me, to begin with, I would say don’t play MS Dhoni at all. Give Dhoni a rest. You are figuring out who will be your second wicketkeeper. I would say straightaway that try out Rishabh Pant and Dinesh Karthik. But Indian selectors have gone ahead with Dhoni in the first game. But I would say try out DK, try put Pant because this is a trial for them to be the second keeper,” Badani told ESPNCricinfo.

Badani has also backed Shankar to play against the Aussies as he wants the Tamil Nadu all-rounder to get some game time ahead of the team selection for the global event. Shankar recently toured Australia and New Zealand with the team and put up a decent show. He scored 27, 14 and 43 in the three T20Is against the Kiwis while his bowling wasn’t tested there. Apart from that, he had also got a crucial 45 against the Black Caps in the fifth ODI. 

“Vijay Shankar has done exceedingly well in the series against New Zealand. That is why I say, try that kid out and give him as many chances as possible. If gets some runs on the board there is a chance that he might go on to play in the World Cup,” the former India international explained.