Sanju Samson and Yuzvendra Chahal made it to India's provisional squad for the T20 World Cup on Tuesday on the back of strong IPL performances, but Shubman Gill and big man Rinku Singh were demoted to the reserve group as the selectors went with the proven players for the squad. event in June. The BCCI announced the Rohit Sharma-led squad after a meeting between secretary Jay Shah and chief selector Ajit Agarkar in Ahmedabad. Rohit and Agarkar are expected to address the media in Mumbai on Thursday.
All-rounder Hardik Pandya was retained as vice-captain despite his poor recent form after taking over the leadership of Mumbai Indians in the ongoing IPL. Hard-hitting batsman Shivam Dube also made the cut after a strong IPL show for Chennai Super Kings.
“There was a lot of discussion about Hardik's place in the team while there was not much debate about Samson. Rinku was just unlucky. It was a battle between Dube and Rinku with Hardik also in the team,” a BCCI source told PTI. .
Samson, who has had a good IPL as batsman and captain for Rajasthan Royals, was included as the second wicketkeeper-batsman behind Rishabh Pant, beating the likes of KL Rahul and Ishan Kishan.
Leg-spinner Chahal, who last played for India in August 2023, is the second wrist-spinner in the team besides Kuldeep Yadav.
However, Gill, who is having a good run in the IPL as captain of Gujarat Titans, was among the standbys along with Kolkata Knight Riders' big-hitter Rinku Singh.
The selectors decided to show faith in Yashasvi Jaiswal, who had a slow start in the IPL but recently got his touch back with a swashbuckling hundred for Rajasthan Royals. The formidable Virat Kohli completed India's top spot after putting up a strong batting performance in the IPL.
The T20 World Cup starts on June 2 in the US and the Caribbean. India will open its campaign against Ireland on June 5 in New York.
Indian squad for T20 World Cup: Rohit Sharma (Captain), Hardik Pandya (Vice-Captain), Yashasvi Jaiswal, Virat Kohli, Suryakumar Yadav, Rishabh Pant (WK), Sanju Samson (WK), Shivam Dube, Ravindra Jadeja, Axar Patel, Kuldeep Yadav, Yuzvendra Chahal, Arshdeep Singh, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohd. Siraj.
Reserves: Shubman Gill, Rinku Singh, Khaleel Ahmed and Avesh Khan.
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