Chennai, June 19 (IANS) India’s assistant coach Ryan ten Doeschate said the side has identified Nitish Kumar Reddy as the natural successor to Hardik Pandya in the seam‑bowling all‑rounder role, adding that the youngster has been groomed over the last 18 months with next year’s World Cup in mind.

Reddy missed the second ODI against Afghanistan in Lucknow due to soreness in his left thigh and could return for the clash at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai on Saturday. “When Hardik’s fit, he obviously brings a different element because he’s such a strong batter, such a strong finisher. That sort of role scarcity is difficult to find – a finisher who can give you overs as well.

“So those guys are all tracking really nicely. Like I said with Nitish, for the last 18 months, he’s shown glimpses of how important he can be to this team, particularly in this format. I feel his body’s getting stronger and stronger, and I sort of feel he is the natural successor or back‑up to Hardik,” Ten Doeschate said in the pre-match press conference.

India have also experimented with Harshit Rana and Gurnoor Brar as lower‑order options, but ten Doeschate underlined their primary role as bowling all‑rounders. “I would still say the majority of those guys are bowling all‑rounders. But certainly to see these other guys chipping in and working on their games, even someone like Gurnoor and Harshit again, they’re bowling all‑rounders.

“But the fact that we feel we’ve got guys who can hold the bat at No.9 and obviously looking forward to the next 14‑15 months, that is going to be very important, especially in South Africa when you want to play three proper out‑and‑out seamers.

“Those guys are going to need to bat. So yeah, a lot of good signs on the all‑rounder front and also on the fast bowler front. I think it’s been refreshing this week to see Prince, Gurnoor, and Nabi,” he added.

With India having sealed the ODI series, ten Doeschate confirmed changes are on the cards for the game in Chennai. “We will be making a few changes from the first two games. I think part of the brief coming into the series was that we wanted to try a few different combinations and give everyone a fair share of games. If someone like Arshdeep does very well in the first two games, he can take a rest tomorrow.”

On wicketkeeper-batter Ishan Kishan’s century in Lucknow, ten Doeschate praised his versatility. “I think with Ishan, the only concern was whether he transforms himself from a T20 specialist into a 50‑over player, potentially even a red‑ball player. I think he showed that the other night.

“By nature, he’s very aggressive, and we still feel there’s space for that in this team. You do have some solid batters around him if you include them in the team. With Shubman and Virat, you have two of the more classical guys who are going to bat through the innings.

“He is a very versatile player. He can bat at the top of the order, he can bat in the middle, and obviously, the fact that he’s a top gloveman as well. I think he ticks a lot of boxes and so on. Like I said, purely for versatility is something you want in your squad,” he said.

He signed off by saying India is likely to retain the same top three from the second ODI in Lucknow – Rohit Sharma and Yashasvi Jaiswal opening, followed by Shubman Gill at number three.

“It is a consideration. The versatility of their batting line‑up is fantastic. I don’t think KL will bat at No.3 tomorrow. We want to have a good look at Yashasvi as well. Obviously, he didn’t get around to the last game, so he will probably get another game, I would have thought.

“Maybe with the combination, we need to look at Nitish again. Unfortunately, he couldn’t play the last game, and he needs to start as well. So I would imagine five batters plus Nitish and Washi (Washington Sundar).

“In a series like this against Afghanistan, you might say we can take the foot off the pedal a little bit. We do want to look at guys like Jaiswal. He is someone waiting in the wings because of the quality and depth we have in that position.

“Jaiswal does get a few chances, and it is incredibly tough because he has so much quality. But he is one of those guys who, when he gets the odd opportunity like this, will have to score runs,”

–IANS

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