Three Surprising Exclusions From India’s T20 World Cup Squad
The Board Of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) selection committee, on Wednesday, announced the squad for the upcoming T20 World Cup.
The Board Of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) selection committee, on Wednesday, announced the squad for the upcoming T20 World Cup.
As usual, along with the squad, there were surprises that the selection committee has given us in the form of some exclusions. As soon as the BCCI announced the squad, fans started giving their reactions and views on the selection.
While some looked happy and satisfied with the 15-man squad, few were those who didn’t take time to question the selection.
On that note, let’s check out the top 5 surprising exclusions from the Indian squad for the T20 World Cup.
1. Yuzvendra Chahal
Yuzvendra Chahal’s axing from the Indian squad for the T20 World Cup came as a massive surprise not only for the fans but for the player himself.
The number 1 spinner of team India in the limited-overs format has failed to make it to the 15-member squad. It was a heartbreaking moment, not just for him but for his fans and cricket fraternity as well.
Chahal has always been among the top wicket-takers of the Indian Premier League from 2015 to 2020. Also, one should not forget that he has taken the most wickets in the Chinnaswamy Stadium, which offers a flat deck where every batsman loves to bash the bowlers away.
He might have failed to impress much in the England series earlier this year but still, he did the job well for India against Sri Lanka. Owing to his performance in the Island nation, one thing looked sure that he was going to make it to the T20 World Cup squad but unfortunately he didn’t.
Ravichandran Ashwin, Axar Patel, and Rahul Chahar were selected as the spin bowling options. Varun Chakravarthy, the mystery spinner has also been selected alongside Ravindra Jadeja.
However, later the chief Indian selector revealed the reason behind Yuzvendra Chahal’s exclusion from India’s T20 World Cup Squad.
“Spinners who bowl quick were our priority. Hence, we went with Rahul Chahar,” Chetan Sharma said.
2. Shikhar Dhawan
Shikhar Dhawan’s exclusion from the 15-member squad for T20 World Cup 2021 was a massive surprise as well. Just a couple of days ago, many were even expecting him to open the innings for team India alongside Rohit Sharma.
Few were expecting the left-hander to make a cut into the squad as a back-up opener. Even I did. But it seems, the BCCI is best at giving early surprises. Aren’t they?
The left-handed batsman led the second-string team India in Sri Lanka just two months back but found no place when it came to the showpiece event. Not seeing him even in the standby list hurts more.
However, it is worth noting that Dhawan hasn’t been replaced by anyone as the team only has two openers in Rohit Sharma and KL Rahul.
Chief selector Chetan Sharma, speaking to the press after the selection meeting, said that they can’t talk about the discussion that went by in the meeting and Dhawan is in the loop.
“Shikhar is a very important player for us. Can’t disclose the discussion. He is in the loop. We thought the need of the hour was to look at others and rest him,” he said.
3. Shreyas Iyer
Yes yes!! He is in the standby list but not in the squad. His exclusion, however, isn’t a surprise for many of us as we somewhere had realized that he would not be able to make it to the T20 World Cup squad, owing to his injury issues.
If it was a year back, he would have been in the squad for sure. However, with the plenty of players who can serve us in the middle order, namely Suryakumar Yadav and Ishan Kishan, it becomes really tough to achieve the number 4 spot in the shortest format of the game.
However, if we go by tactical viewpoint, axing Shreyas Iyer from the squad won’t look like a bad move. The Mumbai-born is more of an anchor than an aggressive batsman.
As India already have anchors in the team in the form of Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, and KL Rahul, we needed someone in the middle who can go after the bowlers from the first delivery, and Suryakumar Yadav and Ishan Kishan will surely serve the purpose.
However, ICC has already announced that the teams can change their T20 World Cup till October 10 so it will be interesting to see if Yuzvendra Chahal, Shreyas Iyer, and Shikhar Dhawan could impress the selectors in the remaining phase of the IPL and make a direct cut to the squad.
