"He would walk into any international team" - Farokh Engineer on Shikhar Dhawan's exclusion from India's T20 World Cup squad
The announcement of the Indian squad for the 2021 T20 World Cup, which will be held in UAE and Oman, was surprising to many. Apart from Ravichandran Ashwin's unexpected comeback into the white-ball set-up, a few big names were missing from the selected squad. The omissions of Shikhar Dhawan and Yuzvendra Chahal in particular raised a few eyebrows.
Former Indian wicketkeeper Farokh Engineer expressed his disappointment at the exclusion of Shikhar Dhawan from the Indian squad for the 2021 T20 World Cup. In an interview with Sports Tak, Engineer said:
"Shikhar Dhawan… well, I'm surprised that he has been omitted because he has come in and done fantastically well. But that is such a huge problem for the Indian selectors that players such as Dhawan are getting to be dropped, which is a huge disappointment. Because he (Dhawan) would walk into any international team as a batsman. He has proved himself time and again, and I don't think a player of his caliber should be on trial."
Nonetheless, Engineer feels that the Indian team's strength and depth is such that the selectors had to make some tough decisions. The former wicketkeeper-batsman feels India have been spoilt for choice with respect to the quality of batsmanship available. The brilliance of KL Rahul and Rohit Sharma at the top of the order has pushed Dhawan's chances of getting into the team further away.
Engineer feels India have every chance of winning the 2021 T20 World Cup
Speaking on what he thinks about the selected Indian squad, Farokh Engineer said:
"I haven't exactly studied it. I only heard it once. But it seems that all the top players are there. Suryakumar Yadav is in the squad, which I am really happy to see. (Rahul) Chahar is a very good bowler, and there is (Jasprit) Bumrah of course. I think with Ravindra Jadeja and Rohit Sharma, the balance of the team is good. I think we've got a good squad."
Engineer also added:
"But who do you drop? KL Rahul has done very well. He is superb; one of the best batsmen in the world, I think Rohit Sharma is on top of his form. Still, I think it's an excellent team they have picked, and I think we have every chance of winning the T20 World Cup."
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As Engineer stated, Dhawan has fallen behind in the pecking order due to his fellow batsmen's tremendous recent form. Meanwhile, Yuzvendra Chahal was neglected as well, with India choosing to go with fellow leg-spinner Rahul Chahar in his stead. Chahar impressed everyone with his abilities on the recent tour of Sri Lanka and has performed admirably as a frontline spinner for the Mumbai Indians in the IPL.
Team India find themselves in Group 2 of the Super 12's in the upcoming T20 World Cup. They will clash with Pakistan, New Zealand, Afghanistan, the runner-up (Group A) from Round 1 and the winner (Group B) from Round 1.
India's first T20 World Cup fixtures will be against fierce rivals Pakistan on October 24 at the Dubai International Stadium.