'Almost an impossible task': Ramiz Raja fires warning to Rohit, bats for Suryakumar's inclusion ahead of AUS Test series
Former Pakistan skipper Ramiz Raja wants Rohit Sharma and Co. to hand Suryakumar Yadav his debut Test cap in Nagpur. India will meet Australia in the 1st Test of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy at the Vidarbha Cricket Association Stadium.
Throwing weight behind uncapped Suryakumar Yadav, former Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) chief Ramiz Raja has said that Team India should have a 'full-proof' strategy to humble Australia in their backyard. With India set to host Australia in the 1st Test of the action-packed Border-Gavaskar Trophy on Thursday, former Pakistan all-rounder Raja has opined that the Rohit Sharma-led side should hand Suryakumar his debut Test cap in Nagpur.
Welcoming the recruitments of white-ball stars Ishan Kishan and Suryakumar for the Australia series, former cricketer Raja observed that hosts India have a great opportunity to mount pressure on the visitors in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy. With India facing selection dilemmas for the series opener, former Pakistan skipper Raja spoke at length about the inclusion of Suryakumar in the Indian playing XI on his YouTube channel.
"India should play Suryakumar Yadav. He will generate pace with the bat. They have named a lot of T20 players in their squad for the first two Tests, which is good because action is what gets a thumbs-up from everyone in Test cricket these days. We saw how England scored 350-400 runs in a single day against Pakistan. The more pace you generate, the more pressure you can create. India have a great opportunity to create pressure," Raja said.
The former PCB chief also asserted that Indian skipper Rohit will be facing one of his biggest captaincy tests in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy. The veteran opener has played only two Test matches after replacing Virat Kohli as India's full-time captain. The senior batter has missed eight of India's last 10 Test matches.
"Rohit Sharma's captaincy will be put to the test, there is no doubt about that. There isn't going to be a single session in the first Test where Australia won't fight hard. There won't be any flat sessions. The strategy needs to be full-proof and so does the selection. There also needs to be clarity over the conditions they want to trump Australia," he added.
Australia are touring India for the first time since 2017. Visitors India had upstaged Australia 2-1 in the three-match series at the time. Hosts India had also secured historic series wins over Australia in 2018/19 and 2020/21. India and Australia are also leading the race to enter the final of the ICC World Test Championship final.
"Australia recently played a very gruelling Test series in Pakistan. It was a very tough series, with matches going on till the final day. They played the pressure points better than Pakistan in the last half an hour to win. Australians are known to create relentless pressure and will do the same in this series as well. They know that it is a very big series for them, as beating India at home is almost an impossible task," Raja added.
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