Leg spinner Yuzvendra Chahal and left-arm spinning all-rounder Krunal Pandya have also been dropped. Spinners Rahul Chahar and Varun Chakravarthy are surprise inclusions.
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With India announcing their 15-member squad for the upcoming T20 World Cup on Wednesday, there were plenty of surprises in store. The return of off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin to the white-ball squad and the announcement of MS Dhoni as team mentor topped the surprise charts on Wednesday. As far as the selection was concerned, there was no place for experienced opener Shikhar Dhawan, while leg-spinner Yuzvendra Chahal also missed out on the squad. Meanwhile, Shreyas Iyer, Shardul Thakur and Deepak Chahar are included as the reserve players in the team. Virat Kohli’s side will kick start their World Cup campaign on October 24 against arch-rivals Pakistan.
BCCI Honorary Secretary, Jay Shah explained the reason behind appointing former captain Dhoni. Notably, it was under his leadership, the team won the 2007 World T20. “As far as Dhoni is concerned, I spoke to him when I was in Dubai,” said Shah. “He was okay with the decision, and he agreed to be a mentor for team India, for the T20 World Cup only. I spoke to the captain (Virat Kohli) and vice-captain (Rohit Sharma) as well as Ravi Shastri (the head coach), and that’s why we reached the conclusion.”
“Former India Captain @msdhoni to mentor the team for the T20 World Cup” – Honorary Secretary @JayShah #TeamIndia
— BCCI (@BCCI) September 8, 2021
But it was the return of Ashwin that is bound to dominate the headlines. The 34-year-old off-spinner last played limited-overs cricket for India in 2017. From then on, he was restricted to Test cricket. Spinners Kuldeep Yadav and Yuzvendra Chahal seemed to be the preferred option for India in limited-overs cricket since then. However, both the spinners are missing from the 15-member squad. Leg-spinner Rahul Chahar and Varun Chakravarthy, regarded as mystery spinner, are the surprise inclusions in the final squad.
“Ravichandran Ashwin has been playing in the IPL regularly. He has performed well there. When you go into the World Cup, you need an off-spinner, everyone has an idea that the wickets in the UAE will get slower as IPL will also be played there. Spinners will get assistance so having an off-spinner holds the key. Washington Sundar is injured and Ashwin is an asset for the team. He has performed well in the IPL so that is why he has found a place for himself in the squad,” Team India chief selector Chetan Sharma said during the press conference.
Senior opener Shikhar Dhawan headlines the players who were dropped from the final squad for the World Cup. Given that the opener captained India in the limited-overs series in Sri Lanka in July, the decision was somewhat surprising. KL Rahul, Rohit Sharma and Ishan Kishan are picked as the three openers ahead of Dhawan.
It is to be noted that Kishan can also keep the wickets, however, Rishabh Pant is expected to be the country’s first choice behind the stumps. Kishan’s ability to play as an opener and be a middle-order enforcer will come in handy for the team. It is safe to say that Kishan and Chakaravarthy have found a place in the squad due to their consistent performances in Indian Premier League and the limited opportunities they got with the national team.
Meanwhile, 30-year-old Mumbai batsman Suryakumar Yadav, who is known for his power-hitting, has also found a place in the squad. The Men in Blue have opted for three specialist all-rounders – Hardik Pandya, Ravindra Jadeja and Axar Patel. It means left-arm spinning all-rounder Krunal Pandya misses out from the 15-member team. Jasprit Bumrah is set to spearhead the pace attack that also consists of Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Mohammad Shami.
On the 24th of October, India will kick off their campaign in Dubai against Pakistan in a Super 12 match. Apart from Pakistan, India have been pooled with Afghanistan and New Zealand in Group 2, as well as two sides who progress from Round 1 of the tournament, beginning on 17 October. The top two teams in each group of the Super 12 stage progress to the semi-finals, with the final set to be played in Dubai on 14 November.
Virat Kohli (c), Rohit Sharma, KL Rahul, Suryakumar Yadav, Rishabh Pant (wk), Ishan Kishan (wk), Hardik Pandya, Ravindra Jadeja, Rahul Chahar, Ravichandran Ashwin, Axar Patel, Varun Chakravarthy, Jasprit Bumrah, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Mohammad Shami; Stand-by: Shreyas Iyer, Deepak Chahar, Shardul Thakur.
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