T20 World Cup 2022: Saba Karim wants Hardik Pandya and Rohit Sharma to play impactful innings against England in semifinal

Saba Karim wants Indian captain Rohit Sharma and all-rounder Hardik Pandya to step up in the T20 World Cup semifinal against England in Adelaide on Thursday (November 10). The former Indian selector feels that the under-fire Rohit must provide a decent start and Hardik should finish the innings in style.

Rohit Sharma didn't make an impact in the Super 12 stage, scoring 89 runs in five games, with a best of 53 coming against the Netherlands. The swashbuckling opener needs to lead from the front in the knockout game.

Meanwhile, runs have dried off Pandya's willow too after his crucial 40 off 37 balls against arch-rivals Pakistan in the first game. Since then, he has managed scores of 2, 5 and a run-a-ball 18 against Bangladesh.

Speaking to India News, Karim said:

“Rohit Sharma and Hardik Pandya need to play impactful innings no matter how long they bat. Hardik has been good with the ball and needs to cover up as a batter in the semi-final and final.”

Karim also feels that the Men in Blue have been overly reliant on Virat Kohli and Suryakumar Yadav, so the other batters need to come to the party.

“If we look at the entire T20 World Cup matches from Team India’s perspective, I think India heavily relies on Virat Kohli and Suryakumar Yadav. Other batters need to prepare in a way where you can win without these two batters.”

While Kohli has amassed 246 runs in five games, Suryakumar has 215 runs in the same number of outings.

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“Other batters should step up” – Saba Karim on how India can reach T20 World Cup final

Karim feels KL Rahul needs to continue his good form after registering half-centuries against Bangladesh and Zimbabwe.

Meanwhile, Dinesh Karthik/Rishabh Pant and Axar Patel must step up and contribute with the bat to ensure India beat England to secure a berth in the final. He said:

“If these top performers couldn’t deliver, do we have the ability to win the game or not? You’ve to be mentally prepared. Other batters should step up to improve our overall performance, and then we can win the match against England.”

Indian batters in T20 World Cup

Rohit Sharma – 89 runs in five innings

KL Rahul – 123 runs in five innings

Hardik Pandya – 65 runs in four innings

Dinesh Karthik – 14 runs in three innings

Rishabh Pant – 2 runs in one innings

Meanwhile, Pakistan will lock horns against last year's runners-up New Zealand in the first semifinal in Sydney today (November 9). The T20 World Cup final, scheduled in Melbourne on Sunday.