Skipper Kohli praises Parvez Rasool ahead of T20 series

Ahead of India’s T20 series against visiting England, Team India skipper, Virat Kohli has praised Jammu and Kashmir all-rounder Parvez Rasool who has been selected for the side. India begins its three match T20 series against England on Thursday at Kanpur and ahead of the match, Kohli interacted with media. Kohli replied to questions related to new inclusions, Yuzvendra Chahal and Parvez Rasool. Kohli praised both the cricketers and hoped that they will do well in the series. Kohli said that both the spinners are smart cricketers and out of them he has seen the capabilities of Parvez first hand during his RCB stint. Kohli said, “The guys who are coming in they have done pretty well in the IPL and domestic T20s. They have been economical and bowled in all the right areas. Chahal, obviously, everyone has seen his performances. Rasool, too, played under me in the RCB, so I’ve seen the way he bowls. He is pretty confident. He can bowl with the new ball even against the most attacking batsmen in the world. These are two who have been pretty smart with their bowling, they can build up pressure by bowling dot balls, that can actually get you wickets”. Kohli said that this series will be important for both the players and they will like to do well in it. “This is a breakthrough series for both of them and might be the perfect opportunity for them to seal their spots as the T20 specialists the Indian cricket side will have in the future,” Kohli said. Parvez on Monday was selected to Team India squad for England series by BCCI selectors as they chose to rest their first-choice spin pair of R Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja for the series. It is after more than two years of gap that Parvez Rasool is making his way back into Team India. Rasool, who is handy with the bat down the order, has played just one International game till date - against Bangladesh in Dhaka in mid-2014.  He got his place in India ODI squad that time after being stand out performer in Ranji trophy event and was subsequently selected for India-A teams against England and Australia in 2013. He is the only cricketer ever from J&K to have played for Team India in any format. He was recently rewarded for his performance by being selected for India-A against England for tour game. In the match, he claimed 3 for 38 including the wickets of Ben Stokes, Jos Buttler and Chris Woakes. In the 2016-17 Ranji Trophy, he took 38 wickets at 23.86 and also scored 629 runs. Parvez is also the only cricketer till date from J&K, to play in IPL. In the IPL, Rasool has represented Pune Warriors, Sunrisers Hyderabad and, most recently, Royal Challengers Bangalore. In 37 T20s, he has 27 wickets at 34.44 with an economy rate of 6.88.