Former Pakistan wicketkeeper-batter Kamran Akmal has questioned India’s decision to field a near full-strength side against Afghanistan, arguing that the three-match T20I series should instead have been used to test the depth of the squad and provide opportunities to players such as Vaibhav Sooryavanshi.
India left the 15-year-old Sooryavanshi out of their playing XI for the opening T20I in Delhi on Sunday, with Sanju Samson and Abhishek Sharma preferred at the top of the order. Jasprit Bumrah, Arshdeep Singh and Varun Chakaravarthy, meanwhile, were all part of a strong bowling attack as India went 1-0 up in the series with a comfortable seven-wicket victory.
Sooryavanshi’s omission particularly surprised Akmal considering India had already exposed the youngster to tougher opposition during their recent tour of England. Speaking on Game Plan, Akmal said India could have used the Afghanistan series to continue developing him rather than returning to their more established options.
“One hundred percent,” Akmal said when asked whether India should have fielded a second-string side. “Sooryavanshi does not sit out against this team. If you play them against England, you are dropping them against Afghanistan.”
‘I don’t understand why Bumrah is playing’
Akmal’s broader argument was that India have enough depth to rotate several of their first-choice players without significantly weakening the side, particularly in a home series. He pointed towards the way senior players were managed during previous eras and felt India had missed an opportunity to expand their pool of ready-made replacements.
“I think series like these help develop backup players. Whether it is MS Dhoni, Virat Kohli or Rohit Sharma, they did not play against such teams. They would get three or four core players to rest. I don’t understand why Bumrah is playing, why Arshdeep Singh is not playing,” Akmal said.
Bumrah was returning to international action in the series and immediately made an impact in Delhi, dismissing Rahmanullah Gurbaz for a duck in his opening over. Afghanistan eventually recovered from 43 for five through Azmatullah Omarzai’s unbeaten 64 to reach 156 for eight, before India chased the target down in only 13.4 overs. Arshdeep finished with 3/19, while Bumrah returned 1/26.
Akmal, however, felt the comfortable nature of the contest only strengthened his argument that India could afford to experiment. “I think they had a lot of options. It is difficult for any team to play in India. This was the best chance for them to get new players. They should have prepared Sooryavanshi. We have been watching this for the last 12-15 years. You are making the whole team play against such teams,” he said.
He also questioned the need to field an established match-winner such as Abhishek, predicting that Afghanistan’s attack would struggle to contain him. That assessment proved accurate as the left-hander smashed 82 off 32 balls, including seven fours and seven sixes, to effectively finish the chase before Afghanistan could create any pressure. “In fact, there is no need to play Abhishek Sharma, either. You will see that he becomes a butcher. He does not leave. He scored 82 runs in 33 balls,” Akmal said. Don’t play everyone. Let two-three players play and give others a rest.”
Akmal did see one advantage in India fielding their established players, pointing to Chakaravarthy’s performance as a potentially useful exercise ahead of bigger assignments. The spinner conceded only 16 runs in his four overs and picked up a wicket. “Varun’s rhythm was good. The team was like this, the opponent was like this. But you will see, from the World Cup to the England series, he was not doing so well. Maybe after playing this series, Varun can bring his rhythm back. It will be a good sign for the Indian team,” Akmal said.
India and Afghanistan will return to the Arun Jaitley Stadium for the second T20I on Tuesday, with Sooryavanshi’s place in the XI likely to remain one of the major selection talking points after India’s dominant start to the series.
