Asia Cup 2018: Brett Lee Reveals Two Batsmen who will be Pivotal for India
Jan 9, 2019 at 3:43 PM
Former Australia cricketer Brett Lee has backed Rohit Sharma and Shikhar Dhawan to excel for India in the upcoming Asia Cup 2018 starting from September 15 at the United Arab Emirates (UAE).
Meanwhile, India will be without their regular skipper Virat Kohli, who will take a break to manage his workload. As a result, they will have their task cut out when they leave for the UAE.
However, Brett Lee thinks Rohit Sharma along with Shikhar Dhawan holds the key to India’s fortunes. He also believes Rohit can the lead the team from the front.
“Two key batsmen for India in the Asia Cup — Shikhar Dhawan and secondly Rohit Sharma. I believe Rohit will get the best out of himself and also the team because he has been given that extra bit of responsibility to lead the Indian side,” Lee told Star Sports.
“With Virat Kohli not playing, Rohit and Dhawan will be the two key men with the bat for India,” Lee adds.
Brett Lee raised problems of Rohit Sharma, the stand-in skipper for India against left-arm spinners. However, Lee feels the conditions will help him dominate the bowlers.
“The great Virat Kohli is being rested for the tournament, so that allows Shikhar and Rohit to be pushed up. There is a lot of talk about how Rohit can’t face left arm fast bowlers – with the swing and the ball going across him,” he continues.
“But, I don’t necessarily agree with that. But what I can say is that in the UAE it will be a different style he will have to face. Yes, they will bring on the left-arm fast bowlers to target Rohit, but I believe on the lower and slower wickets in UAE, Rohit will dominate. I believe the wicket will help him out,” he added.
However, Rohit Sharma enjoys a great record in his short span as the leader. He has already led India to wins in all the series he has led so far. He captained the team to ODI and T20I series win over Sri Lanka last year. Earlier this year, India clinched the Nidahas Trophy under his captaincy.
Rohit is also the most successful captain in Indian Premier League, having led Mumbai Indians to three titles.
India begins their Asia Cup campaign against Hong Kong on September 18.