Hardik Pandya out of form, Venkatesh Prasad rates ‘best 15 players’ in T20 World Cup | Cricket News

Mumbai Indians suffered a 20-run defeat to Chennai Super Kings in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024 on Saturday, raising many questions in the cricketing fraternity. Hardik Pandya has been in the firing line since taking over as captain of MI and has struggled with both bat and ball. With the 2024 T20 World Cup about to be held after the IPL, doubts have started to arise over Hardik’s place in the team.

Never one to mince words, former India pacer Venkatesh Prasad took to social media on Sunday to share an interesting post urging the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) selection committee for Indian cricket. Sports selects the “Top 15 Players.” Contest.

“I hope and pray that India’s best 15 T20 players will get on the plane for the T20 World Cup. We can win the tournament with the talent we have but picking the best players is important,” Prasad said on posted on Twitter).

I hope and pray that India’s best 15 T20 players get on the plane for the T20 World Cup.
We can win games with the talent we have, but the important thing is to choose the best.

— Venkatesh Prasad (@venkateshprasad) April 14, 2024

A healthy Hardik Pandya has always been considered an inevitable choice for India’s white-ball team due to his all-round ability, but his recent form has been unsatisfactory.

Earlier, former New Zealand bowler Simon Doull, who is commentating in IPL 2024, had said that Hardik should not be included in India’s T20 World Cup squad if he cannot bowl consistently.

After the match, Hardik admitted that the target (207 runs) was achievable but Mumbai Indians could not find a good partner in the middle to go all the way.

“The target was certainly attainable but they bowled it quite well. Patialana was different. Their plans and approach were smart. They got the hang of it and there was a man (Dhoni) behind the stumps telling them what works , that helps it (pitching) kind of sticks and gets difficult, it’s about hitting the ball and keeping the intention.

“We were going well (in the chase) until Pathirana came into the attack and took those two wickets. That was the best thing at the time and we could have done something different Things. I like to play percentage cricket and it will be difficult for him (Dube) against seamers and not spin, we will play good cricket in the next four games and need to keep the intensity high ,”He said.