WATCH- Robin Uthappa unveils his ‘bomb squad’ for India for ICC World Cup 2027; includes Vaibhav Sooryavanshi

The 2027 ICC World Cup will be played in South Africa, Zimbabwe and Namibia.

Former Indian cricketer Robin Uthappa has joined the bandwagon of speculations about India’s squad for the ICC World Cup 2027. He has revealed his choice of 15 players who he thinks should represent the Indian team at the world event that will be played in South Africa, Zimbabwe, and Namibia next year.

India has won the ICC World Cup twice, in 1983 and 2011, and since then has also won the ICC Champions Trophy twice, in 2013 and 2025, and the ICC T20 World Cup in 2007, 2024, and 2026.

To guarantee that India has a "gun" World Cup campaign, Robin Uthappa called his 15-player Indian team picks a "bomb squad." Although Uthappa acknowledges that the World Cup is still some time away, he thinks that playing in the same group for the next 12 months would be the best way to get ready for the main event.

“So, this is my World Cup team for 2027 in South Africa. Granted, we have a year to go, but I think if these 15 players play over the next year, it will be perfect prep. And this, I feel, is like a bomb squad,” Uthappa said on Instagram.

In a surprise, Uthappa picked Shubman Gill and 15-year-old Vaibhav Sooryavanshi as the openers. He then picked Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul, and Sanju Samson among his middle-order batting options. Samson will also be Uthappa’s back-up wicketkeeper given his ability to contribute in various capacities.

"Sanju—he comes up as a backup wicketkeeper who can play a finisher role and also can play as an opener as well. He’s got the versatility, which is why I’m going for Sanju," Uthappa said.

 

 

 

 

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Hardik Pandya, Ravindra Jadeja, and Axar Patel were chosen as the all-rounders by Robin Uthappa, and Kuldeep Yadav was named as the specialist spinner.

“You have spin that goes away, spin that comes in, covered," Uthappa said.

Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, and Arshdeep Singh make up Uthappa's four-man speed attack. It's interesting to note that Bhuvneshwar hasn't participated in an ODI since January 2022.

“I think with this squad, if you play over the next year, it will be perfect prep for a gun 2027 ODI World Cup," Uthappa concluded.

Robin Uthappa’s 15-man India Squad for ICC 2027 ODI World Cup:

Rohit Sharma, Shubman Gill (C), Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer (VC), KL Rahul (WK), Hardik Pandya, Sanju Samson (WK), Axar Patel, Ravindra Jadeja, Kuldeep Yadav, Jasprit Bumrah, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Mohammed Siraj, Arshdeep Singh.