The 15-member Indian squad for the T20 WC Squad was recently announced by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI). While most names selected are along expected lines, some did not make the list for various reasons.

The shocking exclusions of some players are glaring, as these players are currently in better form than some of the selected members.

While the selectors have tried to do a balancing act, it is clear that a few big names had to be accommodated and balance players had to be selected to complete the squad.

Rinku Singh

If there was one player who could be on the wish list of many cricket pandits before the 15-member squad was announced, it had to be Rinku Singh. Rinku Singh in recent times was a regular in the T20 Internationals and has performed exceptionally well as a finisher, a position India struggles in the limited-over format.

Rinku Singh’s omission was more due to team balance and support has poured in from former greats giving Rinku Singh the much-needed confidence.

Former India skipper Sourav Ganguly said that Rinku Singh was excluded from the 2024 T20 World Cup squad as a tactical decision and told the batter not to be disheartened. “It’s West Indies. The wickets may be slow and assist spin so they (selectors) wanted to go with another spinner”

Shubman Gill

Shubman Gill has cemented his position in all formats of the game especially in the ODI and Test format. He has been a regular in the T20 Internationals. He has been India’s opener or Number 3 in all formats and with Rohit Virat and Yashasvi already in the side, his exclusion was again more tactical. Shubman Gill possesses the talent and skill and is a complete all format cricketer and could walk into the playing eleven of any international team. Such is the talent pool India possess.

Shubman Gill will be an integral part of the Indian team once the two stalwarts of the game hang up their boot.

Former India captain Sunil Gavaskar commented on Shubman Gill’s exclusion from India’s ICC T20 World Cup 2024 squad, suggesting that Gill’s inconsistent form in IPL 2024 likely contributed to his omission from the final 15. But a splendid century following this comment in the ongoing IPL would have forced the Indian great to eat his words.

Rituraj Gaikwad

Rituraj Gaikwad, The Chennai Super Kings captain is in red hot form in the IPL and it was a surprise when his name was not included in the 15-member considering his current form. Rituraj has been in and around the Indian team in the past year and in some occasion taken leadership role in the absence of some regular seniors. Rituraj Gaikwad an opener in CSK had the game to play in any of top 4 positions in the team but as these places are already occupied, India went for some hard-hitting options in the middle order and likely this may be the reason for his omission.

Gaikwad not only failed to make it to the 15-member squad for the T20 World Cup, and the CSK skipper also failed to find a place in the four-member reserve list.

Abhishek Sharma

Abhishek Sharma has been a revelation in the IPL giving SRH mindboggling starts with Aussie opener Travis Head. The duo has brought in a refreshing style of T20 game. With 200+ strike rate, Abhishek style of T20 game is exactly what India needs to bring into their game.

Abhishek Sharma also bowls orthodox left arm spin which adds a new dimension to this player and a quality team India is desperately in search of.

His lack of experience in the national side, proved to be the deciding factor in his omission.

The Indian top-order is already crowded and Abhishek falls out in comparison to a lot more experienced candidates in the queue.

Ishan Kishan

In Rishabh Pant’s absence, Ishan Kishan became India’s first choice wicket keeper in all formats. The South Paw was given a raw deal when the Team management preferred KL Rahul over the regular keeper to strengthen the batting lineup.

Ishan Kishan even after scoring a double century in an ODI International, still had to warm up the bench in all formats which took toll on the youngster.

There was a fallout with the Team management in the recently concluded South African series when Ishan Kishan asked for a mental fatigue break.

Ishan also failed to show up for his Ranji Team which infuriated the team management and this probably was the final nail in the coffin that kept him out of the list of probable for the T20 World Cup.

Conclusion:

Rinku Singh, Shubman Gill, Khaleel Ahmed, and Avesh Khan are on travel reserves in case of replacements. Their participation in the tournament seems highly unlikely and the reason why the 2 batters are included in the list.

SuperSports360 team, is of the opinion that India with its talent pool should have built a stronger T20 WC Squad without needing to accommodate some of its aging stars.

The game of T20 is evolving and India seems to be lagging in comparison to other international teams who are fielding a younger power-packed team and the mode of playing has seen a paradigm shift from the conventional style of playing the game.

India, unfortunately plays the game which seems to be outdated and a change is only likely once the old stars give way to the young talents waiting in the wings.