New Delhi, May 7

Suryakumar Yadav has to bat at No. 3, said the legendary Brian Lara as he rooted for an India-West Indies final at the T20 World Cup next month to fix the “wrong” of 2007 when India’s early exit “killed us in the Caribbean”.

He’s not an opener, get him out there and if he can bat for 10-15 overs, you know what’s going to happen. He’s going to put you in an unassailable position if you bat him first, or he’s going to win the game if he’s batting second. Brian Lara

India have expectedly retained proven performers like skipper Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli in the squad, while deciding to keep young talent like Shubman Gill and Rinku Singh among the reserves.

Suryakumar, though, is part of the main squad.

“My one advice, and I don’t know if you’re going to like it or not, but SKY has to bat at three. He just has to bat at three. He is one of the greatest T20 players in the game. And you speak to players like Sir Viv, and he will tell you he used to want to get out there in the middle,” Lara said.

“And I feel that that’s the same thing with SKY. So, get in on it as quickly as possible. He’s not an opener, get him out there and if he can bat for 10-15 overs, you know what’s going to happen. He’s going to put you in an unassailable position if you bat him first, or he’s going to win the game if he’s batting second. And then let everybody sort of position themselves outside of that, but a good structure is important,” he explained.

Specific plan

India head coach Rahul Dravid will need a specific plan to get the best out of superstars Kohli and Rohit, Lara said.

“Sometimes when you have a team with a lot of superstars, you forget the plan and you believe that the superstars can do it. They just have to turn up. Sometimes you may feel, as a coach, intimidated, telling Sir Vivian Richards or Virat Kohli, you know exactly what you expect of them,” he said.

Lara said given the big names that make the Indian squad, Dravid will have his hands full on the planning front. “You’ve got a lot of exciting young players coming out and you also have that sort of conundrum. India have gone with a team that has experience. My advice, and it’s not my criticism, to Rahul Dravid is to make sure and have a plan,” he stated.