Former Australian captain Michael Clarke added that India also took a huge risk by picking four spinners in their 15-member squad for the 2024 T20 World Cup. At the same time, he added that the move could work according to the conditions in the Caribbean and make them a huge threat to others. However, there have been mixed reactions to Team India’s team selection where they picked four spinners and only three pacers in their squad for the 2024 T20 World Cup, which will be played in the West Indies and the United States as well.

Apart from left-arm wrist-spinner Kuldeep Yadav and leg-spinner Yuzvendra Chahal, India have spin-bowling all-rounders – Ravindra Jadeja and Axar Patel. Arshdeep Singh, Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Siraj are the frontline pace bowlers in the squad as well.

Speaking to ESPN, Clarke said: “I think India have taken a risk with the squad they have picked – heavily reliant on spin, very different from Australia. But in the conditions that I have played in the Caribbean I think how you play spin is going to be a huge part of whether you succeed or not. India are the biggest threat for me with regards to who is going to win the World Cup.”

While Kuldeep Yadav has bagged 59 wickets in 35 T20I matches at an average of 14.10 and an economy rate of 6.74, Chahal has a huge 96 wickets from 80 matches at an average of 25.09 and an economy rate of 8.19 as well. On the other hand, Jadeja has 53 wickets from 66 games and Axar Patel has 49 from 52. While India are yet to win another ICC title for long, Clarke said that they are the favorite because of the sheer amount of cricket they have played leading into the tournament

“If you look at the favorites for the World Cup it’s got to be India just because of the amount of cricket they have played, their preparation has been outstanding. Conditions are different to India but there are a lot of similarities so the players would be used to that,” Michael Clarke concluded.