Where Will He Fit In?: Virender Sehwag

Former India opener Virender Sehwag feels that former India skipper Mahendra Sigh Dhoni’s comeback into the Indian fold looks very difficult. The selectors have already moved forward and found replacements for Dhoni, he said.

“Where will he fit in? With the likes of Rishabh Pant and KL Rahul already in form, especially the latter performing exceptionally well of late, I think there is no reason why we should not stick with them,” said the 41-year-old, who was in the city on Tuesday.

On India’s dismal run in New Zealand, especially in the ODIs and Test series, Sehwag said: “We must admit that the Kiwis were superior to us in the ODIs and Tests. In the T20s, Kiwis lost close matches. In the shortest format, it is always difficult to make a quick comeback.”

On Indian captain Virat Kohli’s poor form in recent times, Sehwag said: “He is a class batsman, but that has happened to all the great batsmen in different eras be it Sachin Tendulkar, Steven Waugh, Jacques Kallis or Ricky Ponting.”

The Return Of Hardik Pandya Will Make A Huge Difference To The Indian Team:

When asked about who are the favorites for the T20 World Cup in Australia later this year to Sehwag, he answered that “In T20s, one cannot predict favorites. Such is the unpredictable nature of the format, any single player can change the complexion of the game on a given day,”.

“The return of Hardik Pandya will make a huge difference to the Indian team. The whole combination will change with an all-rounder of the caliber of Hardik,” he said.

With the recent rise of teams from Gujarat in the Ranji Trophy, Sehwag said most of the traditional powerhouses were going through a transition period. However, sides like Saurashtra, Gujarat, and Bengal have their key players available throughout the Ranji season, and as a result, they are more consistent.

“For example, Delhi missed players of the stature of Virat, Shikhar Dhawan, Rishabh Pant, and Ishant Sharma, who are mostly on national duty and are unavailable for their side in domestic competitions. Whenever top players have played the domestic season for Delhi, the team has at least reached the semifinals,” Sehwag said.