Should India prefer Rishabh Pant over Dinesh Karthik? Suresh Raina answers

Former Indian cricketer Suresh Raina feels the presence of Rishabh Pant in the Indian team is crucial for the success of Men in Blue at the T20 World Cup Down Under.

Calling the 25-year-old the 'X factor when playing alongside Hardik Pandya' in the middle, Raina in his interview with PTI highlighted the importance of the left-handed batter.

Responding to a query about Dinesh Karthik being preferred over Pant as the wicket-keeper batter in the Playing XI, he said, 'You need to bring the X factor with Hardik Pandya, and who can be the X factor? I think Rishabh being a left-hander could be better'

While Pant is part of the 15-member squad, his place in the playing XI is in doubt despite being the only left-handed batter till No. 6

Praising the southpaw's record in Australia, Raina further explained that a left-right combination can upset the rhythm, especially in Australia where the grounds are big. 'Pant has done really well in Australia and won the Test series there' he added.