Twitter reactions on Vijay Shankar’s inclusion: Twitter was left confused over India’s team changes for the second T20I.
Having lost the first T20I by three wickets at Visakhapatnam, India now find themselves in a must-win situation to save the series. Post not losing to Australia in Australia, losing a series to them at home would be the last thing which the hosts would be wanting.
Advertisement
Much like the first T20I, Australia captain Aaron Finch won the toss and chose to field at Bengaluru. In a bid to not tinker with the winning combination, the visitors opted to field the same squad here as well.
On the other hand, the desperation to win has forced India to make three changes to their squad. Opening batsman Shikhar Dhawan, all-rounder Vijay Shankar and fast bowler Siddarth Kaul have been included in place of opening batsman Rohit Sharma, fast bowler Umesh Yadav and leg-spinner Mayank Markande.
Confusion behind dropping Markande
While the other two decisions are justified, India surprised bountiful fans by including Shankar for Markande. Having made his debut in the first match, the latter had bowled well to register bowling figures of 4-0-31-0.
Instead of backing the rookie cricketer, the team management deciding to drop him hasn’t gone well with the fans. Furthermore, his replacement has caused further confusion on the hosts’ ploy.
While Shankar impressed one and all with his batting during the tour of New Zealand, he wasn’t given the ball in any of the three T20Is. Being an all-rounder, the same had come as a surprise for everyone.
While the team management have played him as a specialist all-rounder tonight, whether he will be able to deliver with the ball remains the big question. With him as the fifth bowling option, India have compromised on their bowling division in a bid to strengthen their batting.
