The BCCI is waiting for the report on the fitness progress of India pacers Jasprit Bumrah and Harshal Patel before announcing the squad for the ICC T20 World Cup 2022. The tournament will be played in Australia from October 16 to November 13.
Many other boards have announced their teams for the tournament like Australia, England, and South Africa ahead of the September 15 deadline. However, the Indian team is yet to be finalized and Indian skipper Rohit Sharma had said after the defeat against Sri Lanka in the Asia cup 2022, that the squad is 95% settled.
The Indian team failed to produce results in the Asia Cup and there might be a couple of players who might get the axe. However, the BCCI selectors are concerned more about the fitness of ace pacers Jasprit Bumrah and Harshal Patel, who both missed the Asia Cup due to injury-related issues and were dearly missed.
"There is time for squad submission. We have a tournament (Asia Cup) going on currently. Hence, there is no reason to hurry. We also need fitness updates on Jasprit (Bumrah) and Harshal (Patel). So, once everything is there, we will announce the squad. Jasprit is expected to be at the NCA this week for an injury assessment. We will know more then," a selection committee member told InsideSport.
Another player whose fitness is of concern is all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja, who had surgery on his right knee after injuring it during the Asia Cup tournament. Bumrah is nursing some back issues and Harshal had suffered a side strain in England.
"His (Harshal Patel) recovery is going great. In fact, he is very close to recovery. He is still at the NCA and will have a fitness test next week to understand how he is progressing. We hope that he will be available for the Australia series," a selection committee member added.
India was eliminated from the Asia Cup after Pakistan defeated Afghanistan the last night and BCCI selectors are expected to announce the Indian squad for the T20 World Cup before the final of the tournament.
They are waiting for captain Rohit Sharma and coach Rahul Dravid to return from UAE to discuss matters. India will play Afghanistan on September 9 in their last match of the tournament.
