The whole country may be in the grip of the Indian Premier League (IPL), but the selectors stuck to their task of striking the best balance for the Champions Trophy, keeping in mind the conditions in England for the event scheduled from June 1 to 18.
The chairman of the selection committee, M.S.K Prasad, who fielded questions from the media here on Monday, emphasised that various aspects were taken into consideration, and that experience was paramount.
Quite understandably, there were no surprises in the 15-member squad, as Prasad stressed that the team combination had been regularly discussed for the past “three to four months”.
To start from the top, the openers slots were taken by Shikhar Dhawan and Rohit Sharma, with Ajinkya Rahane ready to step into the role if required.
M.S. Dhoni, Yuvraj Singh, Kedar Jadhav, Hardik Pandya were named thereafter, while the chairman expressed his gratitude to the franchise of R. Ashwin (Rising Pune Supergiant) for giving him the much needed rest during the IPL, to recover and be ready for the challenge ahead.
Ravindra Jadeja was felt to be “extremely fit” and thus the selectors were confident that he would “cope with the demands.”
Mohammed Shami, Umesh Yadav, Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Jasprit Bumrah took the medium-pacers slots, with Manish Pandey closing the list of the 15-member squad.
“We feel that it is a balanced, experienced, and, from our view, the best team,” said Prasad.
Surprise package
The 22-year-old Kuldeep Yadav, the Chinaman bowler who has caught everyone’s imagination, came in for praise from Prasad, but clarified that he was viewed as a “surprise package” and came “very close” to selection.
However, with Yuvraj Singh and Kedar Jadhav bowling spin, if required, it was felt that another spinner could not be fitted into the team, without compromising its balance.
In fact, Prasad had no hesitation in reeling off the names of Rishabh Pant, Shardul Thakur, Suresh Raina and Dinesh Karthik, apart from Kuldeep Yadav, as the players who were discussed at length would be kept as reserves.
They would be training at the NCA and be ready.
“We are impressed with the way Pant is playing. He is our solution for the future. We will groom and back him,” he said.
When queried about Sanju Samson and Basil Thampi, the chairman was prompt in saying that they were being watched as “good prospects”.
Prasad was profuse in his praise of the IPL, “the best in the world, as a premier domestic event.”
“It is a wonderful platform for the youngsters to showcase their talent. We bring them under the radar and groom them,” he said, about the need to prepare those shining in instant cricket, for the longer format.
Dhoni indispensable
Dhoni was hailed for his wicketkeeping even though his batting may at times give some room for concern.
“We all know that Dhoni is the best wicketkeeper in the world. There may be a question about his batting.
“We feel that he is indispensable and the best person to guide Virat. In the last few years that he has played, MSD has never had a bad day as far as his ‘glove’ is concerned.
“His phenomenal wicketkeeping goes unnoticed,” Prasad remarked.
Squad : Virat Kohli (capt.), Shikhar Dhawan, Rohit Sharma, Ajinkya Rahane, M.S. Dhoni, Yuvraj Singh, Kedar Jadhav, Hardik Pandya, R. Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Mohammed Shami, Umesh Yadav, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Jasprit Bumrah and Manish Pandey.
Standbys: Suresh Raina, Rishabh Pant, Dinesh Karthik, Shardul Thakur and Kuldeep Yadav.
Manager: Kapil Malhotra.
