The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has reportedly set in motion the road to the 2023 ICC World Cup which is to be played in India later this year. They have started by reportedly shortlisting 20 players who will be groomed for this year's mega event.
Though the names of those players have not been revealed, the importance of selecting them based on the 'template' the team is going to adopt is being discussed.
Discussing the same template Star Sports show 'Road to World Cup Glory' with Irfan and Yusuf Pathan and Kris Srikkanth, 2011 World Cup winner Gautam Gambhir said that selection of players, based on the 'template' is crucial given that each player is a different from one another.
"First, you need to identify the players who got that fearless approach, and probably in a format like 50 overs you need to have a mixture of every kind of player. There are players who can anchor their innings. Change in the role has also made a huge difference. During that time we had only one new ball, now we've got two new balls with five fielders inside. So, the role of a part-timer has gone out of the window.
The reverse swings, you don't see enough reverse swings anymore, and you don't see enough of the chase for the finger spinners as well. But, I always feel that when we talk about this new approach, which India always talks about, the template and stuff, you've got to identify players who can adapt those roles or that template very easily," Gambhir said.
Gambhir further explained by giving the examples of contrasting batting styles of Virat Kohli and Suryakumar Yadav in white ball cricket.
"I can't play like Yousuf (Pathan), he can't play like me. If someone asks me to follow Yousuf's template, I won't be able to do that. Similarly, if someone asks Yousuf to follow my template, he won't be able to do that. That is why the identification of players is very important. If you tell Virat Kohli today to bat like Suryakumar Yadav, he can't. If you ask Surya to play like Virat, he won't be able to do that," Gambhir said.
However, Gambhir asserted that the role of senior players like Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli will be very important for India in the 2023 World Cup thanks to their excellent ability to tackle spinners.
"Some people just cannot adapt to that template so why push them to play in a certain way that doesn't come naturally to them. So, for me, I think identifying players and at the same time getting the right mix is very important, rather than thinking that we have to play at a certain template so we got to select all the 15 with a similar mindset or with a similar template. I feel people like Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma and all those guys who can anchor their innings, who probably can play spin really well will play a massive role in the coming World Cup," he said.
Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli will be seen in action in the three-ODI series against Sri Lanka starting January 10th.
(Star Sports inputs)
