High Hopes as India Announces World T-20 Squad

Shilpa Rajan May 1, 2024

Source – Khelnow

On Tuesday, the BCCI selection committee announced their 15-member squad for the upcoming World T-20 in June. Rohit Sharma will be leading the squad once again, and with this, at the age of 37, he will become the oldest captain to lead India at any World Cup.

The selectors have shown their trust in Hardik Pandya once again by naming him Rohit’s deputy. Hardik, who is heavily criticized after his transfer from GT to MI, and the decision to name him captain ahead of Rohit did not go well. Both the MI franchise and Hardik are receiving a lot of hate in almost every IPL game, but the selection committee led by Ajit Agarkar has trusted him for the Vice-Captain’s role.

Yashahvi Jaiswal, Virat Kohli, and Surya Kumar Yadav are the other three batters who have made it to the squad. Jaiswal will be playing at the global level for the very first time.

Sanju Samson has been rewarded for his consistency in the league, as he has been picked alongside Rishabh Pant as the first-choice keeper. Pant will be making his international comeback after December 2022. He last played against Bangladesh on December 22, 2022.

The selection committee has focused heavily on all-rounders, and along with Pandya, they have named four all-rounders, including Jadeja, Axar, and Shivam Dube. Shivam Dube, who has been a constant for CSK for the past 2 years and is grooming every day under the leadership of M.S. Dhoni, has finally caught selectors’ eyes and will be making his first World Cup appearance in the 2024 World T-20.

The tracks in the later part of the World Cup are expected to favor the spinners. Considering the same selectors, we have included four spinners in the unit. Kuldeep Yadav and Yuzi Chahal will be the other two spinners, along with Jadeja and Axar, who will be operating the spin department. Yuzi Chahal, who has been India’s most successful T-20 bowler, has not played a single T-20 World Cup game yet. He was also dropped from the ODI and T-20 squads earlier; this inclusion can also be called his hard-earned comeback.

The pace department will be led by Jasprit Bumrah, who is undoubtedly the best right now. He will be supported by Arshdeep Singh and Mohd. Siraj. Both Siraj and Arshdeep have been doing well for the team.

The exclusion of Rinku Singh was a shocker for everyone, as he was striking the ball well at the lower order, and after Dhoni’s retirement, India’s struggle for a good finisher is not hidden. However, selectors have named him as a reserve player. Senior wicketkeeper batters KL Rahul and Shubman Gill also lost their places in the team. While Gill is there in the reserves, Rahul has been ignored completely.

Indian Squad for the World T-20