If they had allowed Virat Kohli to continue as captain, India would be 100 percent ready for World Cup: Rashid Latif

Virat Kohli. (Photo Source: Twitter)

The 2023 edition of the ODI World Cup kicks off with a clash between England and New Zealand in Ahmedabad on October 5. The excitement is palpable as the marquee event is less than two months away. Teams are busy making their last-minute preparations before facing off in the prestigious world event that will be exclusively hosted by India for the first time.

Former Pakistan wicketkeeper-batter Rashid Latif expressed his concerns about Asian teams in the upcoming World Cup. The 54-year-old felt that the teams from the subcontinent might struggle in the middle overs when a higher strike rate is required. According to him, other teams like England, Australia, and New Zealand will be better suited with their batters having the ability to resort to innovative strokeplay to up the ante.

“The one area where I feel Asian teams will struggle to match these sides are particularly in the middle overs when a fast strike rate is required even in 50-overs. The English, Australian and New Zealand batters have turned to reverse sweep and switch shots against the spinners into something very lethal nowadays,” Rashid said on the Cricket Baaz YouTube channel.

India have not allowed middle and lower order batters to settle with frequent changes: Rashid Latif

Rashid pointed out that India have made too many changes in personnel in positions four to seven in the batting order. This, according to him, could be detrimental to the team’s chances. He also said that Virat Kohli not being the leader of the side could be a reason why the team isn’t 100 percent prepared for the mega event.

“Indian team management has experimented with several players and if I talk about their batting the middle and lower order say from 4 to 7 they just have not allowed any new player to settle down with frequent changes. If they had allowed Virat Kohli to continue as captain, India would be 100 percent ready for the World Cup by this time,” Rashid concluded.

The ‘Men in Blue’ begin their World Cup campaign on October 8 when they face five-time champions Australia in Chennai.