Selecting an Indian squad, especially for a tournament as high-profile as a World Cup (of the 20-over variety, in this instance), requires delicate tightrope-walking. Nearly 80 percent of the squad picks itself; the remaining two or three berths will invariably raise heat and dust, no matter who the personnel picked, or left out, are.
There are no major surprises in the party of 15 handpicked on Tuesday afternoon by Ajit Agarkar’s panel of five wise men, beyond perhaps the recall to the T20 format after eight months in the wilderness of leg-spinner Yuzvendra Chahal. The 33-year-old last played an international 20-over game in August last year, in Lauderhill. Perhaps the fact that India will play all their initial league matches in the US influenced his selection as much as his tally of 13 wickets from nine games for Rajasthan Royals in the IPL, though it must be kept in mind that in his last three games, he has figures of two for 143 in 12 overs.
Chahal is one of four full-time spinners, suggesting that the decision-makers – the selectors, skipper Rohit Sharma and head coach Rahul Dravid – expect slow surfaces that will facilitate turn in the US and the Caribbean. There was some talk about Ravi Bishnoi supplanting the older man as the preferred leg-spinner, especially given that on the fielding spectrum, his alacrity is at the other end of the labouring Chahal. But Bishnoi has managed just five wickets in nine outings and therefore Chahal’s inclusion has to be viewed as an attacking gamble even if means his inclusion in the XI will rob both the lower-order batting and the fielding of plenty of sheen.
Predictable as this team is, could it have been improved upon? Couldn’t a place have been found for the irrepressible Rinku Singh, not long ago considered a shoo-in for the World Cup but now named in the reserves alongside Shubman Gill, also unlucky to miss out, and the pace duo of Avesh Khan and Khaleel Ahmed? Wasn’t there a case for Mayank Yadav, the outstanding young quick who began the IPL with so much fire and brimstone but has been forced to watch from the sidelines for the last fortnight with a hip/side strain?
Of course, there will be heartbreak and disappointment when only 15 can board the flight, especially when so many options abound, but that’s a reality that can’t be overlooked or changed. And so, Rinku and Gill will have to bite the bullet and channel their angst, if any, towards delivering standout performances for their respective franchises. Gill, the Gujarat Titans skipper, will have in KL Rahul, the Lucknow Super Giants captain, a kindred soul. One of the front-runners for the second stumper’s position behind Rishabh Pant, Rahul lost out to Sanju Samson, who has been rewarded for his consistency as well as his ability to perform under pressure without a dip in scoring rate. Even amidst his personal disappointment, Rahul will grudgingly accept that his Rajasthan Royals counterpart deserves his place.
That IPL form has been used as a convenient tool is all too obvious. Chahal has wended his way back largely because of his IPL exploits while Hardik Pandya has retained his national vice-captaincy despite a horror season with ball and bat in his first stint as Mumbai Indians captain. Yashasvi Jaiswal has earned the right to partner Rohit even though he has had only one meaningful knock so far, while Virat Kohli’s presence is primarily due to the 500 impressive, if not exactly impactful, runs he has amassed for bottom-of-the-table Royal Challengers Bengaluru.
Kohli’s strident defence of his rate of scoring and his dismissal of those questioning the same isn’t mere bluster and bravado. His strike-rate this season of 147.49 is significantly higher than his career IPL strike-rate (131.02), his overall T20 strike-rate (133.94) and his T20I strike-rate (138.15). To even consider leaving him out would have called for loads of courage and multiple layers of thick skin; it wouldn’t have been a popular call, given that the vast legion of Kohli fans would have risen up in arms. Those aren’t reasons why someone should be selected, of course, but given Kohli’s recent exploits, his immense experience, his unmatched expertise and his infectious energy, how could he not be in the team? The only way Rinku, or maybe even the gifted Tilak Varma, could have broken through was either if Kohli wasn’t in the mix, or if the think-tank decided to go in with just one wicketkeeper-batter. Neither was really feasible.
India’s best 15, then? On balance, one would have to say so. Maybe not on form, but what is it that they say about form and class?
