While the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup 2023 is still three months away, the fans and experts have already started picking their favourites for the quadrennial event, slated to be held in India.
Former cricketer Kris Srikkanth has also joined the bandwagon, opining that India would have been the real favourites for the 50-over World Cup if wicketkeeper-batter Rishabh Pant was fit and playing for the team.
Pant, who met with a horrific car crash last December, is in the midst of rehabilitation and there is no clarity on his comeback yet. Before the incident, the southpaw played 30 ODIs and scored 865 runs at an average of 34.60 and a strike rate of 106.65, including one hundred and five fifties.
The International Cricket Council on Tuesday (June 27) unveiled the schedule for the 2023 World Cup, due to get underway on October 5 with the England versus New Zealand clash.
India will open their campaign against five-time champions Australia in Chennai on October 8.
"We don't know the real truth about Rishabh Pant. Because Rishabh Pant, if he was playing, I would have straightaway said that India are the real favourites for the World Cup. But I think obviously, Rishabh Pant's fitness is questionable. Nobody knows how fit will he be before the World Cup. I doubt it. Many people doubt if he will play the 2023 World Cup. Otherwise, the Rishabh Pant factor would have been very crucial," said Srikkanth, as quoted by India Today.
Despite the absence of Pant, Srikkanth believes India have the capability of winning the World Cup with the likes of Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma, Shubman Gill and KL Rahul in their ranks.
"So I believe guys like KL Rahul should be back in the middle order. KL Rahul has been fantastic. We have Rohit Sharma opening with Shubman Gill. Then we have Virat Kohli, who has been fantastic in this format and he has been in form. I believe India has got the capabilities of winning the World Cup," he added.
After the opening match against Australia, the Rohit Sharma-led side will face Afghanistan at the Arun Jaitley Stadium in Delhi on October 11. India’s third match in the showpiece tournament is a high-octane clash against Pakistan on October 15 in Ahmedabad.
The Men in Blue will go up against Bangladesh on October 19 in Pune, while they will lock horns with New Zealand to try and avenge their 2019 semi-final defeat on October 22 at the picturesque HPCA Stadium in Dharamsala.
Team India will take on England in Lucknow on October 29. The home team’s last three matches include two against the sides that will enter the main event through the ongoing ICC Men’s ODI World Cup Qualifiers.
While India will face the second-placed team from the World Cup Qualifiers on November 2 in Mumbai, they will be up against South Africa in Kolkata on November 5.
India will play their last group stage match against the top-placed team from the World Cup Qualifiers on November 11 in Bengaluru.
