Mumbai (Maharashtra) [India], October 24 : Former Indian cricketer Irfan Pathan urged star Indian batter Virat Kohli to focus on strike rotation ahead of the final ODI against Australia at Sydney, noting that there is no looking back for the batter once he starts doing it well.
As he heads to Sydney for the final ODI, Virat will be aiming to add a run to his tally, having been dismissed for two successive ducks in a tour billed as his return to international cricket. The match at SCG could very well be his last competitive cricket match for India in Australia, and the superstar batter would love to go out on a high with a big knock.
Speaking on JioStar, Irfan said that Virat's form is important for India's fortunes.
"Virat Kohli's form is important. He needs to rotate the strike and keep the scoreboard moving. Because once he starts doing that, it becomes very difficult for any opposition to stop him. I hope Virat starts rotating the strike quickly, gets some runs on the board, and once that happens, there's no looking back for him," he said.
JioStart expert and former India cricketer, assistant coach, Abhishek Nayar, also said that the fast bowlers will have to pick up more wickets in the final ODI.
"With the kind of assistance they're getting on these Australian pitches, they need to make full use of the conditions and show that in their performances. I would like to see the Indian pacers, especially with the new ball, strike early and make that impact," he added.
Six of the 11 wickets India picked up in this series have been picked up by fast bowlers, with two each coming from Harshit Rana and Arshdeep Singh in the previous match. With three wickets, Arshdeep has been India's leading pacer, at an average of 24.00, while Rana averages 43.00 and Siraj averages 70 for the sole wicket picked in two matches.
Former Indian cricketer and JioStar expert, Aakash Chopra, pointed out that the three-pacer strategy would not be needed on a spin-friendly Sydney Cricket Ground, and the team's premier attacking spinner, Kuldeep Yadav, should finally make it to the playing XI.
"Three fast bowlers might not be needed in Sydney, because it is generally a spin-friendly pitch. Kuldeep Yadav enjoys bowling here; it is a big ground, and you can use that to your advantage in the middle overs. India should play Kuldeep and look to exploit the middle overs phase, creating wicket-taking opportunities and pressure through spin," he concluded.
Kuldeep picked up two wickets for 54 in the sole ODI he played here at the venue back in the 2019 series. Overall, in three matches across all the formats, Kuldeep has taken eight wickets here at an average of 21.50, with a five-wicket haul to his name during the fourth Test of the 2018/19 Border-Gavaskar Trophy.
Squads:

India Squad: Rohit Sharma, Shubman Gill(c), Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, Axar Patel, KL Rahul(w), Washington Sundar, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Harshit Rana, Arshdeep Singh, Mohammed Siraj, Kuldeep Yadav, Prasidh Krishna, Dhruv Jurel, Yashasvi Jaiswal

Australia Squad: Mitchell Marsh(c), Travis Head, Matthew Short, Matt Renshaw, Alex Carey(w), Cooper Connolly, Mitchell Owen, Xavier Bartlett, Mitchell Starc, Adam Zampa, Josh Hazlewood, Josh Inglis, Matthew Kuhnemann, Jack Edwards, Nathan Ellis, Ben Dwarshuis.