Former Indian opener Virender Sehwag believes that Yuvraj Singh and Suresh Raina should be brought back into the ODI side to bolster the middle order.
Both Raina and Yuvraj were ignored for the limited-overs leg of the Sri Lankan tour. India have opted to play KL Rahul and Kedar Jadhav in the middle-order. However, both men have failed to show any spark in two of the three ODIs where they were expected to rally after the hosts fought back with a few quick wickets.
Sehwag, speaking exclusively to India Today, felt the other option in the middle-order — Manish Pandey and Jadhav — were far too inexperienced and felt Yuvraj and Raina could add more balance to the playing XI. Both men were part of India’s 2011 World Cup-winning squad and Yuvraj was named man-of-the-series for his all-round performances.
“Kedar Jadhav and Manish Pandey are relatively inexperienced. If they have to play the World Cup, they have to play 100 ODIs before the tournament. Raina and Yuvraj in the middle order, will add more teeth to the batting,” Sehwag said.
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Meanwhile, Sehwag also urged observers to not be too critical of MS Dhoni, who has been in terrific form since the start of the year. “You cannot judge a player on the basis of one match. A player cannot perform the way he did in his younger days. Every player goes through that phase. When needed, Dhoni’s experience will come in handy.”
“Great players find a way to perform and I do not think he will be challenged at all by this bowling attack,” he said.
However, former India skipper Sourav Ganguly said great players like Dhoni always found a way to score runs. Ganguly also said it was unlikely he would be challenged by an ordinary Sri Lankan attack for the remainder of the tour which includes two more ODIs and a one-off T20 International.
Yuvraj made his ODI comeback earlier this year while Raina has not played the fifty-over format since 2015.
Only time will tell if they are considered for future matches as India look to form their core for the 2019 World Cup in England.
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