NEW DELHI: This Indian Premier League (IPL) will be the final mega audition of players for next year’s T20 World Cup to be co-hosted by India and Sri Lanka.
India’s T20 team has sustained its dominance since the T20 World Cup triumph in June last year, but it hasn’t been India’s first-choice squad, with formats overlapping and selectors preserving senior players for Test matches.
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It has created an awkward situation for the selectors. For instance, Rishabh Pant will have to fight for his wicketkeeping spot with Sanju Samson coming good in two out of four T20I series after the T20 World Cup. Yashasvi Jaiswal and Shubman Gill, who were long considered as Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli’s successors at the top of the order, will have to do a lot more to displace Abhishek Sharma and Samson. KL Rahul, after being dropped for the last T20 World Cup, too will look to re-establish himself.
TOI understands that head coach Gautam Gambhir is a strong advocate for having a niche T20 team. Even as the Test team suffered debacles during his tenure, he proudly wears the young T20 team’s success as a badge.
Sources close to the selectors and the team management say things are very fluid. Some experts feel that these T20I series were more like India ‘A’ games except the last one at home against England. Going by the nature of the format, selectors are likely to create a core team based on recent form rather than past records.
Backup wicketkeepers as finishers?
While Samson has an established reputation as an opener, his wicketkeeping competitors Pant and Rahul may look to find a place in the middle order. Despite Abhishek, Samson and Tilak Varma’s dynamic performances, India have struggled to consistently finish with a flourish.
Gill and Jaiswal are already pushing for the opening slot. This may prompt Pant and Rahul to show their mettle down the order in IPL.
Backup for Bumrah, Arshdeep
Arshdeep Singh and Jasprit Bumrah will always be the first-choice pacers. But the selectors are wary of Bumrah’s fitness issues and need to create a definite backup. Mayank Yadav was fast-tracked in the T20I series against Bangladesh in October. If he regains fitness and has a good IPL, he could push Harshit Rana for a spot.
Spinners for Indian conditions
Varun Chakravarthy and Axar Patel fit right in, so this IPL will be crucial for Kuldeep Yadav if he wants to stay ahead of Ravi Bishnoi. Bishnoi has shown great temperament in bowling the tough overs.
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