The BCCI All-India Senior Selection Committee on Wednesday whirled a few surprises as they announced the squad for the upcoming ICC T20 World Cup 2021 to be played from October 17 to November 14 in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Oman.
BCCI chief of selection panel Chetan Sharma, on Wednesday (September 8), revealed the reason behind picking experienced off-spinner R Ashwin in the 15-member Team India squad for the upcoming ICC Men's T20 World Cup 2021 later this year.
Ashwin’s selection was among the big surprises, as he hasn’t played a T20I since 2017, and Sharma revealed that good performances in the Indian Premier League (IPL) went in favor of experienced off-spinner to be picked for the ICC T20 World Cup.
Sharma said during a virtual press conference: “Ravichandran Ashwin has been playing in the IPL regularly. He has performed well there. When you go into the World Cup, you need an off-spinner, everyone has an idea that the wickets in the UAE will get slower as IPL will also be played there.”
The chief selector added, “Spinners will get assistance so having an off-spinner holds the key. Washington Sundar is injured and Ashwin is an asset for the team. He has performed well in the IPL so that is why he has found a place for himself in the squad.”
On being asked how much role IPL played in selecting the T20 World Cup squad, he said: “IPL is a big tournament where the best players around the world play. So you come to know about the performance of a player. The standbys have been picked keeping in mind that the players can get injured.”
On the exclusion of Shreyas Iyer, the former cricketer said: “When it comes to Shreyas Iyer when a player stays away from the game for a long period, the selectors have their reservations, that is why he has been named in the standby list. He will get chances in the IPL, his fitness can be looked at and that is why we have named him in the standby list.”
Sharma also said about the opening options in the squad, “We have three openers. KL Rahul, Rohit Sharma, and Ishan Kishan. We back Ishan as an opener and in the middle-order as well. He can be fitted anywhere. Ishan Kishan is a flexible player, he has already opened. He is a good player of spin as well so he can be fitted in the middle-order. We have three openers for now.”
He concluded, “Virat has brilliant records in the middle-order while batting in the T20s. The situation will determine who opens but as of now, we have picked three openers - Rahul, Rohit, and Ishan.”
India will play Pakistan in their tournament opener on October 24 in Dubai.
(With ANI Inputs)
