The Selection Day

The next 3 months are going to keep a lot of people in India glued to their television and bring out a lot of unseen and unhear of experts. It is 2023 and it’s time for a cricket world cup. Yes, the same world cup where in 2019, one bad day for India led to its ouster from the Semifinal despite dominating the entire tournament. Many things have changed since then but the core of the team is still the same and set to remain the same. Starting 21st August, the last laps for World Cup preparation for India would begin with the Ajit Agarkar led selection committee set to name a squad for Asia Cup, which will be the rehearsal for the World Cup squad. There are multiple experts out in the open talking about the potential squad, I decided to not hold myself back and come up with a squad which can help repeat the glory of 2011.

Openers: Rohit Sharma and Shubman Gill are automatic picks but having Ishan Kishan as a left field option can be a great add. In fact, having Ishan Kishan at the top of the order can be a surprise package for multiple teams and could have a similar impact which Sanath Jayasuriya had in 1996 World Cup. He’s hard hitting and can unsettle the bowler’s line and length. Likely, Rohit and Shubman will be part of the playing 11 but Ishan is a very good option to open with Gill while Rohit could drop to number 3.

Middle Order: Virat Kohli picks himself automatically but if the situation demands, he should be kept flexible between Number 3 and Number 4 owing to instability in the remaining middle order. Shreyas Iyer and KL Rahul should form the remaining middle order, injuring permitting. In case Shreyas Iyer and KL Rahul don’t recover, it is worthwhile to bring Tilak Verma just like Suresh Raina was an option in 2011 world cup. Suryakumar Yadav is a beast in T20is, but having him in the world cup squad and not in the playing 11 will not be justified. Only if the selectors and captain believe that he can play every game, he should be included in the squad. KL Rahul will be the designated wicketkeeper with Ishan Kishan staying as the reserve.

All Rounders: Ravindra Jadeja, Hardik Pandya and Shardul Thakur should be the allrounders in the team who can lend the balance with their spin bowling, seam bowling and power hitting. Another spin bowling allrounder option is Washington Sundar, but his lack of game time could work against his favor.

Bowlers: 3 bowlers select themselves in the form of Jasprit Bumrah, Mohd Shami and Mohd Siraj. Another pacer to add in the repertoire would be Prasidh Krishna for being a middle overs enforcer. Among the specialist spinners, Kuldeep Yadav is a firm favorite to grab the spot along with Yuzvendra Chahal. Both have their special skills, but it is likely that only one of them will make the cut in the playing 11.

So, the expert within me has called for the following squad along with a predicted playing 11.

Final 15: Shubman Gill, Rohit Sharma, Ishan Kishan, Virat Kohli, KL Rahul, Shreyas Iyer, Hardik Pandya, Ravindra Jadeja, Shardul Thakur, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohd Siraj, Mohd Shami, Jasprit Bumrah, Yuzvendra Chahal and Tilak Verma

Likely Playing 11: Shubman Gill, Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, KL Rahul, Shreyas Iyer, Hardik Pandya, Ravindra Jadeja, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohd Siraj, Mohd Shami, Jasprit Bumrah

The surprise playing 11 (Part 1): Shubman Gill, Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, Tilak Verma, Hardik Pandya, Ravindra Jadeja, Kuldeep Yadav, Prasidh Krishna, Mohd Siraj, Jasprit Bumrah

The surprise playing 11 (Part 2): Shubman Gill, Ishan Kishan, Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, Tilak Verma, Hardik Pandya, Ravindra Jadeja, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohd Siraj, Jasprit Bumrah

There can be multiple permutations and combinations for the playing 11. What India will need to do while finalizing their squad of 15 is to ensure that they have surprise options who can spring up during the world cup and unsettle the teams. Irrespective of the pedigree, majority of the teams have a good plan in place for our top 3 batsmen and key bowlers. It is not much of a loss to spring a surprise and unsettle some plans.