"The greater upside belongs to him" - Ian Bishop and Gautam Gambhir pick Avesh Khan over Harshal Patel for Team India cap

Former cricketers Ian Bishop and Gautam Gambhir have opined that Avesh Khan has a brighter future in terms of national team selection ahead of Harshal Patel. Patel and Khan have been leading the pack in terms of wickets and the race for the purple cap race.

Patel leads the wickets charts by a significant margin and has already set the record for the most wickets taken by an Indian pacer in the history of the tournament. However, both Bishop and Gambhir sided with Avesh Khan as their pick.

Bishop felt Avesh Khan's ability to bowl with equal proficiency across all stages of the game and his age gave him a significant headstart over Harshal Patel in terms of race for national team selection. While speaking to ESPN Cricinfo, Bishop said:

"Avesh Khan can bowl across different phases of the innings with great impact. He can bowl with the new ball, nip it in, he cam bowl in the middle and hustle you with pace. Harshal is slightly different, depends more on batsmen coming at him. So, you can compartmentalize them in different packages. The greater upside belongs to Avesh Khan if he can continue on the trend."

The former U-19 cricketer has been able to keep bowlers like Ishant Sharma and Umesh Yadav away from the Delhi Capitals playing XI. Avesh Khan has also matched the rhythm of world-class bowlers like Kagiso Rabada and Anrich Nortje.

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Avesh Khan ahead of Harshal Patel in terms of an India cap at the moment: Gambhir

Avesh Khan was selected for the tour of England earlier this year as a net bowler, but his stint was cut short after he suffered an injury in a warm-up fixture.

Gambhir felt Avesh Khan's skill set makes him a huge asset and picked him ahead of Harshal Patel for a potential national team call-up in the future. He named Khan the 'standalone' bowler of the tournament. In this regard, Gambhir said:

"Avesh Khan can bowl at different situations of the game. He is bowling alongside the likes of Rabada and Nortje and he has not looked any less than them, and they are world class bowlers. He can bowl over 140, I still remember the yorker he bowled to Pandya at Sharjah, so the skillset is there. So, Avesh Khan is closer and I will probably pick Avesh Khan before, he has been the stand-alone bowler in this tournament," Gambhir added.

Avesh Khan was roped in by the Delhi Capitals for a sum of ₹75 lakh in the 2018 auction. He made sporadic appearances for the franchise in his initial years, but has now cemented his place in the playing XI on the back of some tremendous performances at IPL 2021.