Strong Indian XI Of Players Not Selected For The T20 WC Squad
On Wednesday, BCCI announced the Indian Team for the 2021 T20 World Cup. The event will take place in UAE and Oman from the 17th of October. India will start as one of the favourites to lift the trophy. In this article, we talk about a strong Indian XI of players who are not selected for the T20 WC Squad.
India's T20 WC squad carried plenty of surprises. Players like R Ashwin have made a comeback, while Axar Patel unexpectedly earned a spot in the squad. Ishan Kishan too made it to the squad ahead of some experienced options.
Note: We have not included Shreyas Iyer, Deepak Chahar and Shardul Thakur as they are part of the travelling contingent.
Openers: Prithvi Shaw and Shikhar Dhawan (C)
Prithvi Shaw and Shikhar Dhawan will open the batting for this strong Indian XI of players who are not selected for the T20 WC squad. Although Shaw was not much in contention, he still had an outside chance considering his good form. On the other hand, many considered Shikhar Dhawan to be a certain part of the unit. He led the Indian Team in Sri Lanka and also has had two good campaigns in recent IPL seasons. Yet, the management has preferred Ishan Kishan, who will come in as the reserve wicket-keeper. Kishan will also be the backup opener to KL Rahul and Rohit Sharma.
Middle-Order: Manish Pandey, Sanju Samson, Dinesh Karthik (WK) and Nitish Rana
Manish Pandey did not have a chance to be a part of the squad. However, he is a quality cricketer and a few months ago, he was part of the Indian Team. Sanju Samson has got many chances but is yet to prove his potential in Team India. He also did not do well when India toured Sri Lanka recently. Dinesh Karthik is an experienced option and could have actually improved the lower middle-order of Team India. However, even he has missed out on the opportunity. Nitish Rana was part of the tour of Sri Lanka and will come in as one of the finisher options for this XI.
All-Rounders: Krunal Pandya and Washington Sundar
Washington Sundar and Krunal Pandya will be the all-rounders in this strong Indian XI of players who are not selected for the T20 WC squad. Washi's injury might have played a part in his non-selection. Instead, R Ashwin has made a comeback to the team. Krunal Pandya had fewer chances but seeing Axar Patel get into the squad ahead of him is a big surprise. Pandya is actually a better candidate with the bat and the ball.
Bowlers: T Natarajan, Mohammed Siraj and Yuzvendra Chahal
T Natarajan was seen as the ideal partner for Jasprit Bumrah in the T20I squad. However, Nattu has recently recovered from an injury, and this might have prompted the management to sideline him. Chahal's exclusion is a big surprise considering he is India's highest T20I wicket-taker so far. Siraj has improved and could have offered variety to this XI. However, he has also not made it to the squad.