Wasim Jaffer picks his 15-member Indian squad for T20 World Cup 2024, leaves out Axar Patel
Former Indian batter Wasim Jaffer has picked his 15-member squad for the T20 World Cup 2024 slated to take place in June.
The Indian contingent for the big-ticket event is set to be announced on Sunday/Monday, with the deadline being May 1. The chairman of the selection committee, Ajit Agarkar, is reportedly in Delhi to have a final chat with Rohit Sharma before the announcement.
On Saturday, Sharma's Mumbai Indians lost by 10 runs against the Delhi Capitals at Arun Jaitley Stadium in Delhi.
As per Jaffer's squad, Yashasvi Jaiswal is the probable opener along with Sharma. Virat Kohli comes in at No. 3, followed by Suryakumar Yadav at No. 4. Then, one among wicket-keepers Sanju Samson and Rishabh Pant will feature in the XI.
The 46-year-old included Shivam Dube and Rinku Singh in the finisher's role, while choosing Hardik Pandya and Ravindra Jadeja as the all-rounders.
Interestingly, Jaffer excluded Axar Patel from the squad, who has been impressive in the ongoing IPL season. Patel has garnered 134 runs at a strike rate of 135.35, with a top score of 66 and taken seven wickets at an economy of 7.36 in 10 games.
The veteran picked Yuzvendra Chahal and Kuldeep Yadav as the specialist spinners, with Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj and Arshdeep Singh as the pace bowling options.
Here is Jaffer's squad for the T20 World Cup:
KL Rahul misses out on Wasim Jaffer's T20 World Cup 2024 squad
Another notable exclusion from Jaffer's T20 World Cup squad was KL Rahul, who has been impressive in IPL 2024.
The Lucknow Super Giants skipper has amassed 378 runs at an average of 42 and a strike rate of 144.27. However, his competitors, Sanju Samson and Rishabh Pant, have delivered superlative performances as well.
Samson has garnered 385 runs at a prolific average of 77 and a strike rate of 161.09, while Pant has scored 371 runs at an average of 46.38 and a strike rate of 160.61.
It will be interesting to see who among the three keepers gets the final nod to represent India at the T20 World Cup.