Ambati Rayudu picks 15-member Indian squad for upcoming 2024 T20 World Cup; Hardik Pandya & Rishabh Pant excluded

Former Indian batter Ambati Rayudu picked his 15-member Indian squad for the upcoming T20 World Cup, scheduled to be played in the West Indies and USA, starting on June 1.

With the ongoing 2024 IPL throwing up several options for each position, the selectors have the tough task of picking a balanced 15-man unit.

Rayudu himself had some surprising exclusions from his squad, notably Hardik Pandya, Rishabh Pant, Axar Patel, and Sanju Samson. Hardik has been in poor form for the Mumbai Indians (MI), averaging only 21.57 with the bat and a woeful 46.50 with the ball.

However, the same cannot be said for the other three, who have impressed so far this season. On his return from a 15-month absence due to injury, Pant has averaged over 36 at a strike rate of 150.29 in eight games for the Delhi Capitals.

Pant's competition for the wicketkeeping spot, Samson, has fared even better, averaging a sensational 62.80 at a strike rate of over 152. Axar has been steady as ever, with six wickets at an economy of under 6.90 in eight outings.

Meanwhile, Ambati Rayudu went with Dinesh Karthik as the lone wicketkeeping option in his squad. The veteran has been in outstanding form in the ongoing IPL, averaging over 52 at a strike rate of 196.

The former IPL winner picked Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj, Arshdeep Singh, and Mayank Yadav as his pace-bowling options. While the first three are no surprises, Mayank has never played for India in any format and only just made his IPL debut for the Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) this season.

However, the 21-year-old has shown the ability to bowl at express pace with admirable accuracy, picking up six wickets at an average of under 10 in three games. Rayudu also picked the wrist spin duo of Yuzvendra Chahal and Kuldeep Yadav in his squad with Ravindra Jadeja as the spin-bowling all-rounder.

As far as the top-order batting is concerned, he went with the superstar duo of Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli, followed by Yashasvi Jaiswal and Suryakumar Yadav.

The surprises came in the selection of his middle order with Shivam Dube and Riyan Parag, along with the more obvious choice of Rinku Singh. Dube has terrorized opposition bowlers in the IPL, scoring 311 runs at an average of 51.83 and a strike rate of almost 170.

Meanwhile, Parag has put all his past IPL struggles behind him, scoring 318 runs at an average of 63.60 and a strike rate of 161.42 to help Rajasthan Royals (RR) be atop the points table.

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Ambati Rayudu's 15-member Indian squad for 2024 T20 World Cup

Rohit Sharma (c), Yashasvi Jaiswal, Virat Kohli, Riyan Parag, Suryakumar Yadav, Rinku Singh, Dinesh Karthik (wk), Shivam Dube, Ravindra Jadeja, Mayank Yadav, Jasprit Bumrah, Yuzvendra Chahal, Mohammed Siraj, Arshdeep Singh, and Kuldeep Yadav.