Former Indian cricketer Ashish Nehra has predicted that skipper Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli will set the stage on fire and will be the leading run scorer for their side in the T20 World Cup 2022. He said that both batters bat in the top order and will have more opportunities to score runs.
“Whoever bats at the top will obviously be among the runs like Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli,” says Ashish Nehra
It’s fair to say that both Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli have to step up if India has to fancy its chances of winning the World Cup. They both over the years have been the lynchpins of the Indian batting lineup and have taken the team to great heights.
Talking about skipper Rohit Sharma, the opening batter has been in decent form in T20Is this year but he needs to add consistency to his game. The right-hander has so rare scored 540 runs in 23 matches at a strike rate of 142.48 to go with two fifties.
Whereas on the other hand, Virat Kohli since Asia Cup has looked himself. After having a lean phase for nearly three years, the right-hander has returned to form and has been scoring consistently. He has played match-winning knocks for India and would be hopeful for doing the same in the World Cup.
In the 14 games that he has played this year, Kohli has looked solid and has scored 485 runs at an average of 44.09 to go with four fifties and a solitary century.
Virat Kohli Practising after Today's Warm up match.pic.twitter.com/qwjSVjKL35
— Mufaddal Vohra (@mufaddel_vohra) October 13, 2022
Speaking to ICC, Ashish Nehra explained “Just as we talk about who will be India’s leading run-scorer in T20 cricket, whoever bats at the top will obviously be among the runs like Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli. You’ll rarely see anybody claim that Dinesh Karthik or Hardik Pandya will finish as the tournament’s leading run-getter because they will face fewer deliveries.”
Ashish Nehra predicts X-factor for teams in the T20 World Cup 2022
Apart from naming India’s leading run-getter, Nehra also talked about a few players who can be X-factors for their side. He backed Haris Rauf to be the game-changer for Pakistan. Notably, the pacer has been in a red-hot form of late and has taken 21 wickets in 15 matches at an economy rate of 8.03 in 2022.
“Some names will also prove to be the X-factor in Australia. First, Pakistan’s Haris Rauf will be key. When you talk of Pakistan, the first name is Shaheen Shah Afridi, who has been brilliant, but Haris Rauf goes under the radar. I’d say he will be important for Pakistan.” Nehra said.
Virat Kohli has maintained the highest average in T20 World Cup 🇮🇳👑#t20worldcup #t20 #indiancricket pic.twitter.com/Ygicu2aIdf
— Sportskeeda (@Sportskeeda) October 12, 2022
He also batted for Anrich Nortje to be the X-factor for South Africa. Adding to his point, he said:
“Secondly, South Africa’s (Anrich) Nortje. He has also tackled injuries, but his bowling in Australia could prove to be lethal. These two bowlers could be crucial apart from all the other names I took before.”
India will begin their T20 World Cup 2022 campaign against arch-rivals Pakistan in Melbourne on Sunday (October 23).
