On Wednesday, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) announced a 15-member squad for the upcoming ICC T20 World Cup in UAE and Oman between October 17 to November 14, 2021. While the selection of the veteran spinner, Ravichandran Ashwin came as a surprise, the announcement of former World Cup-winning skipper, MS Dhoni joining as mentor left the fans bemused. Many former cricketers and experts weighed in on the squad and opined about Dhoni’s involvement with the Virat Kohli-led team.
Ravichandran Ashwin received a surprise call-up in the squad while Yuzvendra Chahal has been left out. The squad is loaded with multiple spinners. Axar Patel is another surprise selection in the final-15 while Kuldeep Yadav also failed to make the cut.
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Meanwhile, Shikhar Dhawan, who led the Indian team in Sri Lanka recently, couldn’t find his way in the 15 and has been kept in reserves. Shreyas Iyer along with Deepak Chahar and Shardul Thakur are also named in the reserves for the tournament.
Tweeting about selection of MS Dhoni as a mentor, the BCCI wrote on Twitter: “Former India Captain @msdhoni to mentor the team for the T20 World Cup” – Honorary Secretary @JayShah.”
"Former India Captain @msdhoni to mentor the team for the T20 World Cup" – Honorary Secretary @JayShah #TeamIndia
— BCCI (@BCCI) September 8, 2021
The veteran Indian wicket-keeper batsman, Dinesh Karthik wrote: “That is one HELL of a team . Well done selectors. M S DHONI – that’s a masterstroke too. Congrats to everyone but more so to @ashwinravi99 and @chakaravarthy29 from my neck of the woods. Well done boys.”
That is one HELL of a team . Well done selectors .
M S DHONI – that's a master stroke too 😉💞🙂
Congrats to everyone but more so to @ashwinravi99 and @chakaravarthy29 from my neck of the woods. Well done boys 👍❤️ https://t.co/ovJlGBH95g
— DK (@DineshKarthik) September 8, 2021
Former Indian opener Wasim Jaffer added a touch of humor while revealing his surprise at Dhoni’s addition as he shared a mem along with his tweet.
MS Dhoni after making a surprise entry into the Indian dressing room for #t20worldcup2021 😄 pic.twitter.com/xhJtxqes7m
— Wasim Jaffer (@WasimJaffer14) September 8, 2021
Former India spinner Pragyan Ojha also congratulated the team as tweeted: “Two big boosts from the announcement of the team for the T20 World Cup! #Ashwin & #MSD as mentor! Brilliant @BCCI @JayShah @SGanguly99.”
Two big boosts from the announcement of the team for the T20 World Cup! #Ashwin & #MSD as mentor! Brilliant @bcci @JayShah @SGanguly99
— Pragyan Ojha (@pragyanojha) September 8, 2021
Here are some of the reactions from the other fans reacted:
https://twitter.com/KhugshalRitik/status/1435641339467599880?s=20
Retweet if you can’t wait to see him back after so long!😍#Dhoni #MSDhoni #WorldCup pic.twitter.com/wtOjLdMZAy
— MS Dhoni Fans Official (@msdfansofficial) September 8, 2021
MS Dhoni is back in blues!😍🥳
Mahi is all set to join as Team India’s Mentor in the World T20 Cup. #TeamIndia #Dhoni #WorldCup pic.twitter.com/TbfigZKP07
— MS Dhoni Fans Official (@msdfansofficial) September 8, 2021
Team India Squad:
Virat Kohli (c), Rohit Sharma (vc), KL Rahul, Suryakumar Yadav, Rishabh Pant (wk), Ishan Kishan (wk), Hardik Pandya, Ravindra Jadeja, Rahul Chahar, R Ashwin, Axar Patel, Varun C, Jasprit Bumrah, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Mohammed Shami
Team India standby players: Shreyas Iyer, Shardul Thakur, Deepak Chahar.
