Looking to end their long-standing ICC trophy drought, Team India will open their T20 World Cup 2024 campaign against Ireland at the Nassau County International Cricket Stadium in New York on June 5.

With only two days remaining for the match, India’s team composition is making all the noise, especially the opening combination.

While Yashasvi Jaiswal and Rohit Sharma would provide a left-right opening combo, there is a school of thought that in-form Virat Kohli should partner the Indian captain at the top.

Recently, former all-rounder Irfan Pathan backed the idea of a left-right combination at the top of the batting order, thus picking Jaiswal as captain Rohit’s opening partner.

“If Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli open the innings, a left-arm spinner will come in straight away, and you need to counter that. Without a left-hand batter, you will struggle, especially in a big game. But if Virat bats at number 3, it opens the slot for Jaiswal. A right-hand, left-hand combination is crucial, especially when the ball is moving or spinning. Most teams have left-arm spinners who can take the ball away from right-handers. This is why you need a left-hander at the top of the order,” Pathan told Star Sports a few days ago.

However, Irfan Pathan has now made a shocking U-turn by dropping Yashasvi Jaiswal from his India playing XI for the T20 World Cup match against Ireland.

Pathan made this decision based on the conclusions he drew from the warm-up fixture against Bangladesh in New York on Saturday (June 1).

Notably, Jaiswal did not bat for India in that game as Sanju Samson partnered Rohit at the top despite Virat Kohli's absence.

In his playing XI unveiled on Star Sports, Pathan picked Kohli as Rohit's opening partner and handed the No. 3 role to Rishabh Pant, who smashed 53 off 32 balls in the practice match.

The T20 World Cup winner slotted Suryakumar Yadav at No. 4, followed by Shivam Dube, Hardik Pandya and Ravindra Jadeja in order.

In the bowling department, Pathan picked Kuldeep Yadav as the lone spinner while he named three pacers in Jasprit Bumrah, Arshdeep Singh and Mohammed Siraj.

Irfan Pathan’s playing XI for India’s opening match against Ireland:

Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma (c), Rishabh Pant, Suryakumar Yadav, Shivam Dube, Hardik Pandya, Ravindra Jadeja, Kuldeep Yadav, Jasprit Bumrah, Arshdeep Singh and Mohammed Siraj