Ajit Agarkar and Rohit Sharma in press conference© AFP
India’s T20 World Cup 2024 squad saw some bold decisions being taken by selectors as an out-of-form Hardik Pandya earned the nod while players like Shubman Gill and Rinku Singh were snubbed. Though the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) chief selector Ajit Agarkar revealed in a press conference that Hardik’s selection was down to a lack of alternatives, a report later revealed that the selection committee was under pressure to pick the Mumbai Indians all-rounder. BCCI secretary Jay Shah has now opened up on the T20 World Cup squad selection, saying players can’t be picked purely on the basis of IPL form.
In a chat with the Times of India, Shah asserted the need to put overseas experience also into account as selectors pick squads for a tournament of the stature of the T20 World Cup.
“It has a good balance between form and experience. The selectors cannot choose on the basis of IPL performance alone, as overseas experience is also necessary,” he said.
A report in Dainik Jagran had claimed that neither Rohit nor the selection committee, led by former India pacer Ajit Agarkar, was in favour of selecting Hardik.
The report added that Hardik was picked in the team under ‘pressure’. The report did not mention whether it was a situational pressure (as he is India’s top fast bowling allrounder) or a pressure from some quarters. The report also attributed sources as saying that captain Rohit Sharma , BCCI chief selector Ajit Agarkar, and some selectors were against Pandya’s selection in the T20 World Cup team, during the selection meeting in Ahmedabad.
The Indian team, at present, doesn’t have a pace bowling all-rounder with similar skillset as Hardik. Shivam Dube is the only alternative to Haridk, though his skills with the ball don’t come close to the Mumbai Indians star.
It would be interesting to see how Rohit, the India captain, picks his playing XI in the T20 World Cup.
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