I expect a fearless approach from young India batters in second T20I: Abhinav Mukund

After a narrow four-run defeat in the first T20I against the West Indies, India will be aiming to stage a strong comeback and level the series when the two sides meet at the National Stadium in Guyana on Sunday (August 6). JioCinema expert Abhinav Mukund feels India should not worry too much about the loss in the opener and focus on the immediate job at hand.

“India are playing a young team and playing this format after a long time. There’s a new batting order in place and no senior players in the side like Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli and Ravindra Jadeja. No (Jasprit) Bumrah and (Mohammed) Shami with the ball, too. I don’t see it as too much of a concern,” said Mukund. 

“They approached the first game well, made a few mistakes but overall, I feel if they have the right approach, they will come out as the winning side. It’s too early to read into the result as something of a defeat because it was a game of close margins. I feel India will bounce back strongly as they have a good side,” he added. 

So should India’s top order change its approach in this game? “India’s batting approach was based on the conditions in Trinidad. The pitch was slow and it wasn’t offering too much for stroke-making. For the 2^nd T20I, we are expecting another slow batting surface, but we expect someone like an Ishan Kishan to go big, someone like a Tilak Varma, who started off really well, and maybe even someone like Suryakumar Yadav, to play a few big shots. You would expect a fearless approach from the young batters in the 2^nd T20I,” explained Mukund. 

The former India opener also feels India should stick to the bowling unit that played in Trinidad. “In the bowling department, I don’t see too many changes. With Hardik Pandya bowling four overs, that doesn’t give the option of bringing in another medium pacer. Mukesh Kumar was exceptional at the death and I feel he will get to play this game. Arshdeep Singh was a little under-cooked but he came back strongly. You don’t see too many changes in bowling,” said Mukund.