Can MS Dhoni pop a Pawan Negi surprise?

India suffered a setback before the semi-final after veteran all-rounder Yuvraj Singh was ruled out of the on-going Word T20 due to an ankle injury he suffered during the vital game against Australia.

But, Yuvraj’s twisted ankle has left everyone with a twisted question. Who among Ajinkya Rahane, Manish Pandey and Pawan Negi would or rather should his place in the team. The timing of his injury wasn’t good by any means. At a time when India is prepping up hard to lock horns with the dangerous West Indies side in the semi-final contest at the Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai, Yuvi’s absence from the side will surely hurt the team plans to some extent.

The unfortunate injury to the southpaw turned out to be a boon for Manish Pandey, who was named as the replacement for the all-rounder. But, at the same time, it has also opened the door of opportunity for Ajinkya Rahane and the million dollar baby Pawan Negi.

When Pandey last played for India in the fifth and final ODI at Sydney in the bilateral series in Australia he scored a match-winning century to help India win the game. Ajinkya Rahane has warmed the bench so far in the tournament. Pandey is in brilliant touch whereas Rahane may get a look-in despite his poor string of recent performances simply because he could be useful in familiar conditions.

But, isn’t an all-rounder supposed to replace another. In that case, keeping a broader point of view, Pawan Negi happens to be the most suitable player to take Yuvraj Singh’s place in the team. A hard-hitting batsman and a left-arm spinner, Pawan Negi also shares the same attributes as Yuvraj.

Yuvraj has been an important element in the squad since his comeback. With the bat, he has forged some highly valuable stands with Virat Kohli and others while snapping up crucial wickets in the middle overs for India, maintaining his reputation as the ‘Man with the Golden.’

Negi is an exciting talent and promises to fulfill this role in the team. He is capable of playing some big shots down the order, and can potentially come in at No. 7 or 8 as a power hitter if Hardik Pandya is promoted. He can certainly increase the firepower in the batting order. Negi will also provide India with another spin option just like Yuvi did previously. In his 33 matches old T20 career, he has picked 30 wickets at an average of 21.56 at an impressive economy of 6.83.

Another factor that works in favor of Pawan Negi is that interestingly, barring Chris Gayle there is no left-hander in the West Indies lineup. The skipper would definitely fancy bowling the left-arm spinner against right-handers on any day in the sub-continental conditions.

Furthermore, the 23-year-old had fared pretty well in the past opportunities which he has got. He made his debut against UAE in the Asia Cup T20 where he ended up with numbers of 1/16 in his three overs spell. This remains his only international appearance after breaking into the Indian squad just days after creating headlines for his 8.5 crores signing with Delhi Daredevils.

Later, he played in the warm-up matches against South Africa and West Indies. The match against South Africa was a forgettable one for him as he bowled just one over in it. But, Negi bowled wonderful and returned with figures of 2/15 against India’s semi-final opponents West Indies in the 2nd warm-up game.

Well, the decision obviously rests up to the captain cool MS Dhoni, but his chances look very strong. Who knows Dhoni’s unpredictable nature may throw a great surprise for the left-arm spinning all-rounder from Delhi like he had while leading CSK in the semi-final of the IPL 2015.

Who among these two has the best chance of making a cut? – Ajinkya Rahane or Manish Pandey: Who gets the nod?