3 players who were lucky to be picked in India's T20I squad for the Ireland series
Team India will lock horns with Ireland in a three-match T20I series in August, but it's clear that their focus is the 2023 ODI World Cup. The BCCI has named a second-string squad to take on the Irish in the rather low-profile assignment.
Jasprit Bumrah and Prasidh Krishna are making welcome returns from injury, with the former even named as the captain of the side. Ruturaj Gaikwad, who will lead India in the Asian Games 2023, will deputize for Bumrah.
Team India squad for T20I series against Ireland: Jasprit Bumrah (c), Ruturaj Gaikwad (vc), Yashasvi Jaiswal, Tilak Varma, Rinku Singh, Sanju Samson (wk), Jitesh Sharma (wk), Shivam Dube, Washington Sundar, Shahbaz Ahmed, Ravi Bishnoi, Prasidh Krishna, Arshdeep Singh, Mukesh Kumar, Avesh Khan.
Most of the selections can't be disputed, with exciting young players and those in need of match practice after layoffs, in almost equal number. At the same time, though, there are a few names who arguably didn't deserve to be in the fold.
On that note, here are three players who were lucky to be picked in India's T20I squad for the Ireland series.
#3 Mukesh Kumar
Mukesh Kumar recently made his debut in the Test and ODI formats in the Caribbean. It remains to be seen if he plays the upcoming T20Is against West Indies, but as things currently stand, he's an unproven bowler in the shortest format.
Mukesh has picked up 32 wickets in 33 T20 matches at an economy rate of 8.11, and his bowling average of 28.68 isn't all too impressive. He went wicketless in five of the 10 matches he played for the Delhi Capitals (DC) in the 2023 Indian Premier League (IPL) and scalped two wickets or more only twice.
The team management clearly have faith in Mukesh, but whether he deserves to be picked in the shortest format is a debatable topic. The 29-year-old could've been replaced by younger, more versatile options, with his ability to bowl across phases of the innings still under question.
#2 Avesh Khan
Jasprit Bumrah, Prasidh Krishna and Arshdeep Singh will likely be India's premier pace trio for the Ireland T20I series. Avesh Khan, who has been in and around these squads without getting a consistent run of games, might not be able to leapfrog the trio in the pecking order.
Avesh hasn't been in great form of late, picking up only eight wickets in nine IPL 2023 matches at an economy rate of 9.76 for the Lucknow Super Giants (LSG). The 26-year-old's consistency and accuracy let him down, as did his clear drop in pace.
Avesh's T20I returns so far have been underwhelming as well. He has 13 wickets from 15 matches at an economy rate of 9.1 and hasn't been able to consistently challenge the best batters in the world.
#1 Shahbaz Ahmed
Shahbaz has played as many as 72 T20s over the course of his domestic and IPL career.
However, he has averaged only 23.06 with the bat so far at a strike rate of 126.83, with only two fifties to his name. The southpaw hasn't been able to keep the scoreboard moving against the slower bowlers and doesn't possess the kind of big-hitting ability needed to bat lower down the order.
With the ball, the left-arm spinner has scalped 47 wickets at an economy rate of 7.41. He was taken to the cleaners at various stages of IPL 2023, even by favorable match-ups.
Despite all of this, though, Shahbaz has found a place in India's squad for the Ireland T20I series. With younger options like Nishant Sindhu and Abhishek Sharma coming through the ranks, India could've turned elsewhere if they needed a replacement for Ravindra Jadeja and Axar Patel, who have been rested.