"India would have played a little better at the start if he played"- Michael Vaughan on Mohammed Shami

Former England captain Michael Vaughan believes that Team India would have won their initial matches of the 2023 World Cup more convincingly if Mohammed Shami was part of the playing XI.

Shami was not a sure starter at the start of the marquee tournament, with the management favoring Ravichandran Ashwin and Shardul Thakur ahead of him. He came into the side after all-rounder Hardik Pandya suffered an ankle injury in the match against Bangladesh.

Calling Shami the Most Valuable Player (MVP) of the tournament, here's what Vaughan told Cricbuzz (1:06):

"I am going to go with Mohammed Shami. India would have played a little better at the start if he played. He has been outstanding."

Shami is currently the leading wicket-taker of the 2023 ODI World Cup. He has picked up 23 wickets from just six matches at an average of 9.13, which includes three five-wicket hauls.

While Michael Vaughan named Shami as the MVP, veteran keeper-batter Dinesh Karthik picked Rohit Sharma as his pick. Explaining his choice, Karthik said (0:38):

"The MVP for me is Rohit Sharma. He has given great starts. He has just shown the template as to how it needs to be done. As a skipper, he has been brilliant as well."

During the same discussion, former cricketer Parthiv Patel stated that he would give the MVP tag to Virat Kohli, who is currently the highest run-scorer in the competition. He stated (1:37):

"Virat Kohli, the way he has batted in this World Cup, there were a lot of expectations of scoring those 49th and 50th hundreds; there is a big milestone. He has batted how the captain wanted him to play. He has changed his game and done a role that not everyone else is doing. He has been a glue of this Indian team."

Kohli has amassed 711 runs from 10 outings. He is the first-ever player to score over 700 runs in a single edition of the World Cup. The ace batter has struck three centuries and five fifties in the tournament.

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"Has gone ahead of Quinton de Kock" - Dinesh Karthik on KL Rahul's contribution as a keeper-batter in 2023 World Cup

Dinesh Karthik reserved high praise for Team India's wicketkeeper-batter KL Rahul for his impressive glovework in the 2023 World Cup.

Rahul suggested that Rahul has performed the role better than South Africa's Quinton de Kock. Karthik elaborated (4:02):

"His wicketkeeping has been outstanding. You have to say it has been one of the best in the tournament. I said Scott Edwards before purely for keeping skills but as an all-round package, KL Rahul has gone ahead of Quinton de Kock. He has played all types of knocks. I believe he can play a very, very crucial role in the final."

Apart from making a significant impact as a wicketkeeper, Rahul has also done a fine job with the bat, chalking up 386 runs from nine innings at an average of 77.20.