MANISH PANDEY A VITAL COG IN INDIA'S WORLD T20 PLANS

While Pandey has not played a lot of T20 games for India over the last few years, he keeps dropping hints of...

- RENIN WILBEN

While most of the attention in the build-up to the World T20 in Australia later this year is being focused on the opening slot and the bowling options, the middle-order batting is also something India need to keep a close eye on. Of course, in a 20-over contest, the middle and lower-order do not get a lot of chances to score big. But, it is their contribution that can often make the difference between a challenging and match-winning score. These batsmen can either build on great starts or consolidate in case of a quick fall of wickets. In the above sense, Manish Pandey can prove to be a vital cog in the Indian batting line-up as far as the World T20 is concerned. While Pandey has been in and out of the Indian team ever since his international debut in 2015, he proved on Friday, against Sri Lanka at Pune, what a great asset he can be to the Indian team in the middle and late overs. Momentum is the most crucial aspect of T20 batting. It doesn’t matter whether or not wickets are falling at the other end. The runs need to keep coming, and the flow cannot be halted considering the shortness of the format.