I would have SKY as the second player in my team after the captain: Harbhajan Singh on Suryakumar Yadav ahead of 2023 World Cup

Former Indian off-spinner Harbhajan Singh believes the Men in Blue need the X-factor of Suryakumar Yadav to win the 2023 World Cup at home. SKY's ODI spot had been a point of huge debate, but the questions seemed to have died down after he smashed back-to-back half-centuries recently against Australia.

With the likes of Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul, and Ishan Kishan among the runs, there has been a debate about who could India play in the middle order alongside Hardik Pandya. However, Harbhajan is pretty clear that he would pick SKY in the XI right from the get-go.

Here's what Harbhajan Singh was quoted as saying about Suryakumar Yadav on India Today Conclave:

"Looking forward to Suryakumar Yadav. He is an X-factor. If he gets going, he won't just win you the match, but he will win you the tournament. If I were a selector, I would have SKY as the second player in my team after the captain. Hardik Pandya is as good as anyone when it comes to hitting the ball and playing the normal game. I would play SKY if I were part of the team management. Who knows if they will play him or not?"

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I would be frightened bowling to Suryakumar Yadav: Harbhajan Singh

Harbhajan Singh conceded that if he still played competitive cricket, he would have run out of ideas while bowling to Suryakumar Yadav. While SKY hasn't been scoring consistently in ODIs, Harbhajan still wants to back him in all World Cup games.

On this, the former cricketer stated:

"I don't know what it is about him (Suryakumar). Today, I would be frightened bowling to him but not when I was at my peak. He reminds me of AB de Villiers. We need a player like him to play. Even if flops, I would still play him for the remaining matches."

It will be interesting to see if India take the punt on SKY when they take the field in their 2023 World Cup opener against Australia in Chennai on Sunday, October 8.