After taking an unassailable 2-0 lead in the three-match series, India will take on Afghanistan in the third and final T20I at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru tonight. Before this match, JioCinema and Sports18’s cricket experts Saba Karim and Parthiv Patel talked about the role of Mukesh Sharma in the death overs and the change in India’s strategy in the final match and also answered many more questions.

1) On Mukesh Kumar’s role in Death Overs

Parthiv Patel: I think he can definitely bowl in the powerplay, he has the skill. He has played a lot of first class cricket and knows what length to bowl, he is not a swing bowler. He is someone who hits the seam and hits back-of-length kind of balls. However, he has improved a lot as a death bowler. India may consider batting first in the third T20 match and put pressure on the opposition team. You can’t question anyone’s abilities but Mukesh Kumar has definitely improved as a death bowler.

Will India bat or bowl first in Chinnaswamy?

Saba Karim: I hope they chase the target in Bengaluru. Not only to keep the bowlers under question but also to test the depth of their batting. Lower-order players like Akshar Patel and Washington Sundar can be looked at. After the arrival of Hardik Pandya, you can understand whether you want to go with three seamers or spinners in the playing eleven or not?

Parthiv Patel: We can also consider preparing slow wickets. The upcoming T20 World Cup will be held in America and West Indies where slow wickets are expected. Players may be tested for similar conditions. We all know that Chinnaswamy is a flat batting wicket, but turn can also be found on that wicket and India can consider doing so. In this way you can test your players and prepare the team for the World Cup.

How important will this match be for Rohit Sharma

Parthiv Patel: I do not see this series as a selection series for the World Cup. I don’t think any player’s performance or not will impact their chances of World Cup selection, especially when you are talking about Rohit Sharma or Virat Kohli. Once you pick them for the series, it means they are going to the World Cup. For Rohit Sharma personally he would like to score runs. He loves to create an atmosphere and if he is involved in it, he will want to make it big.

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