I don't have much confidence in KS Bharat's batting: Harbhajan Singh

Even though former India cricketer Harbhajan Singh recently stated that KS Bharat should play ahead of Ishan Kishan in the World Test Championship finale against Australia, the 42-year-old has now added that he doesn’t have enough confidence in Bharat’s batting abilities. He believes that Ishan Kishan can play an aggressive brand of cricket, just like Rishabh Pant and thus, the Rohit Sharma-led side should consider him for the summit clash.

Notably, Bharat has played four Test matches for India so far but is yet to make a significant contribution. Kishan, on the other hand, is yet to make his debut in the longest format of the game but was in decent touch in the recently concluded IPL 2023 and thus, Harbhajan Singh has backed him to seal a spot in India’s playing XI for the WTC final.

“Why Ishan Kishan should be considered ahead of Bharat? I think this will add more strength to batting as Ishan Kishan can tackle the new ball much better than Bharat. He is an opener too and is in good form. So if the second new ball is introduced after 80 overs and Ishan walks out to bat he can play as an opener.

“Rishabh Pant is an explosive batter and Ishan also has the same quality. Although Bharat is superb behind the wickets, I don't have much confidence in Bharat's batting,” Harbhajan said on his YouTube channel.

Meanwhile, ahead of the final, star Australia bowler, Josh Hazlewood has been ruled out of the competition. Michael Neser will be replacing him in the squad while Scott Boland is very likely to feature in the playing XI in place of Hazlewood.

When it comes to team India, the players so far have stayed far from injuries. The team until Saturday, June 3 was training in Arundel, but has now shifted its preparation to The Oval, ahead of the final, which is slated to begin on June 7.