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India's squad for the 2024 T20 World Cup came out yesterday afternoon (April 30). The BCCI announced a list of 15 players for the main squad and an additional list of four names, who will travel with the team as the reserves in West Indies and USA.
Rohit Sharma will captain the side, with all-rounder Hardik Pandya being his deputy. There were a few eyebrow-raising decisions made by the BCCI selection committee. Before discussing further, here's a look at the 15-man squad:
Rohit Sharma (Captain), Hardik Pandya (Vice Captain), Shivam Dube, Ravindra Jadeja, Axar Patel, Kuldeep Yadav, Yuzvendra Chahal, Arshdeep Singh, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Virat Kohli, Suryakumar Yadav, Rishabh Pant (WK) and Sanju Samson (WK).
The four traveling reserves are Rinku Singh, Shubman Gill, Avesh Khan and Khaleel Ahmed. The squad looks pretty strong on paper, and it goes without saying that India are among the top contenders to win the 2024 T20 World Cup. On that note, here's a look at the three major takeaways from the squad announcement.
#1 Rohit Sharma to get a new opening partner at the 2024 T20 World Cup
Indian captain Rohit Sharma is confirmed to be one of the two opening batters for the team at the mega event in West Indies and USA. In the previous two T20 World Cups, KL Rahul was his opening partner, while in the 2023 ODI World Cup, Shubman Gill and Ishan Kishan were his partners.
This time, Sharma will open the batting with either youngster Yashasvi Jaiswal or the seasoned pro Virat Kohli. Considering how well Kohli has done as an opener for Royal Challengers Bengaluru in IPL 2024, the team management will be tempted to promote him to the opener's role and play an extra all-rounder in the playing XI.
#2 Yuzvendra Chahal pips World No. 6 bowler Ravi Bishnoi for a spot in the 2024 T20 World Cup squad
Yuzvendra Chahal has not played a single international match for India since the away series against West Indies last August. Meanwhile, Ravi Bishnoi cemented his place as the team's primary leg-spinner, even becoming the world number one bowler in ICC T20I Rankings at one point.
Bishnoi continues to be among the top-ranked bowlers in the T20I format, but the selection committee preferred Chahal over him. Perhaps, Chahal's better IPL record and experience of playing cricket in the USA helped him beat Bishnoi in the race.
#3 Khaleel Ahmed could play his first T20I in almost 5 years for India at the 2024 T20 World Cup
An interesting development that took place yesterday was Khaleel Ahmed's inclusion as a reserve player for the squad. Ahmed has represented India in 14 T20Is, with his last appearance coming back on November 10, 2019 against Bangladesh in Nagpur.
Since then, Ahmed has been away from the Indian squad for almost every bilateral series or mega event played. Still, because of his excellent showing for Delhi Capitals in the IPL, Ahmed has found his way back into the international circuit.
India only have three specialist fast bowlers in their main squad. It should not be a surprise if Ahmed makes his T20I return at the 2024 T20 World Cup.
