“When India won in 2011, do we remember spinners getting a lot of wickets?” – Sanjay Manjrekar feels Pacers to have greater impact in tournaments ahead.

Former Indian cricketer Sanjay Manjrekar has endorsed Rohit Sharma’s perspective that the team should not sacrifice a fast bowler to accommodate a spinner in the squad. This is particularly crucial as fast bowlers are expected to play a pivotal role in both the upcoming Asia Cup and World Cup tournaments.

Recalling India’s victory in the 2011 World Cup held in their home country, Manjrekar highlighted the significant contributions made by the fast bowlers, emphasizing that apart from spinner Yuvraj Singh, it was the fast bowlers who played a major role.India recently announced their 17-member squad for the Asia Cup on August 21.

The selectors opted to exclude leg-spinner Yuzvendra Chahal and did not include any off-spinners. Instead, they preferred to have three left-arm spinners: Kuldeep Yadav (wrist-spinner), Ravindra Jadeja, and Axar Patel.

During an episode of the ‘Selection Day Live’ program on Star Sports/ESPN Cricinfo, Manjrekar shared his perspective that the absence of an off-spinner in the squad should not be a significant concern.When asked about the potential need for more spin expertise during the middle overs of matches, Manjrekar mentioned that the situation will likely become clearer after observing the performance of the team in the initial matches of the Asia Cup.

Manjrekar said “When India won in 2011, do we remember spinners getting a lot of wickets? It was just Yuvraj Singh in the middle that was used. People like Munaf Patel made an impact. Zaheer (Khan) led the attack. Small grounds and you see certain kind of pitches in the Test series that India plays at home. But come the World Cup, the curators will be working extra hard.”

“You are generally going to see flat belters; some grounds are going to be small. So your tendency is sort of to go towards the fast bowlers to control the game.”