Former India opener Gautam Gambhir has left out Shreyas Iyer and Shardul Thakur from his preferred Indian squad for the World Cup 2023. The provisional 15-member Indian squad for the mega event will be announced on Tuesday, September 5. Both Shreyas and Shardul are part of the Asia Cup 2023 squad and are likely to be included in the World Cup squad as well.
During a discussion on Star Sports, Gambhir said: “Washington Sundar is there in my squad. I have six batters, four all-rounders, and five proper bowlers in my squad. Rohit Sharma, Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, Suryakumar Yadav, KL Rahul and Ishan Kishan are my six batters. The four all-rounders are Axar Patel, Hardik Pandya, Ravindra Jadeja and Washington Sundar. Then five bowlers which includes four proper pacers who are there in this (Asia Cup) squad and Kuldeep Yadav.”
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However, Rohit Sharma recently added that they are looking for batting depth and also looking for bowlers who can bat effectively at No. 8. And, Shardul is the only seamer in the current mix who can bat well also. However, Gautam Gambhir also asked why he picked Washington Sundar, considering he has not played an ODI for a long time.
“A good squad is one which gives options to your captain. Rohit Sharma said he needs a lengthy batting lineup, so you can go with three spinners as well, and you will be playing in different conditions and venues. Axar Patel and Ravindra Jadeja are similar kind of bowlers. You cannot compare KL Rahul and Shreyas Iyer because KL Rahul is your second wicketkeeper. It was an extremely tight call on whether I should keep Shreyas or Suryakumar Yadav. If you get Ravindra Jadeja to bat at No. 5 and Hardik Pandya at No. 6, Surya can win you matches at No. 7,” he concluded.
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Gautam Gambhir’s Indian World Cup squad: Rohit Sharma, Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, Suryakumar Yadav, KL Rahul, Ishan Kishan, Axar Patel, Hardik Pandya, Ravindra Jadeja, Washington Sundar, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj, Mohammed Shami, Prasidh Krishna, Kuldeep Yadav.
