Predicting Team India's 15-member squad for the 2022 T20 World Cup in Australia
The T20 World Cup in Australia is an extremely important ICC event for Team India. Having done badly in the previous edition, the men in blue would be keen to make amends by winning the trophy. The team anyways has not won an ICC trophy in recent years and that would also be playing on the back of their mind.
It will be a tough task for the management to pick the squad. There is a lot of talent in the country and a few good players might have to be left out. However, that is how cutthroat the competition is. On that note, in this article, we predict Team India's 15-member squad for the 2022 T20 World Cup in Australia.
Openers: Rohit Sharma (C), KL Rahul and Ishan Kishan (WK)
Rohit, KL and Ishan will probably be the opening options in Team India's 15-member squad for the 2022 T20 World Cup in Australia. While Rohit and KL Rahul select themselves, Ishan Kishan has been with Team India for a while now and considering he is a left-hander, he is likely to get a chance.
Middle-Order: Virat Kohli, Rishabh Pant (WK), Sanju Samson (WK), and Suryakumar Yadav
The Indian middle order is almost set for the event. Virat Kohli, Rishabh Pant and SKY will surely be in the team while the remaining spot can be occupied by either Sanju Samson or Shreyas Iyer. However, Iyer is not impressive against pace and hence, Sanju could get his chance.
All-Rounders: Hardik Pandya and Ravindra Jadeja
Hardik Pandya and Ravindra Jadeja are likely to be the two all-rounders in Team India's 15-member squad for the 2022 T20 World Cup in Australia. Although Washington Sundar does have an outside chance, his injury record and the lack of necessary batting skills might force the selectors to oversee him. The fact that Hardik is bowling is positive for India and he will add terrific balance to the XI.
Spinners: Yuzvendra Chahal and Kuldeep Yadav
Considering their exploits in IPL so far, the selectors might get tempted to take both Yuzi and Kuldeep to Australia. With Hardik bowling, the team management can afford to unleash the "Kul-Cha" partnership in one of the games. However, if Kuldeep is not selected, an extra all-rounder or pacer might make the cut.
Bowlers: Jasprit Bumrah, Harshal Patel, Bhuvneshwar Kumar and T Natarajan
India will retain the core of the fast bowling from the 2021 T20 World Cup. Bumrah and Bhuvi are yet again likely to form the new ball partnership for India. Considering his performances so far, Harshal Patel will come in as the death specialist. T Natarajan is back to form and he might be the backup pacer ahead of the likes of Mohammed Shami, Mohammed Siraj, Shardul Thakur and Avesh Khan.