Possible shock call-ups for the 2020 T20 World Cup
Despite the administration boards of all sixteen 2020 T20 World Cup teams on the cusp of looking at squad selection and trying out new formulas ahead of the tournament, there are always players who come out of seemingly nowhere, or even the wilderness, to take their place in the nation's squad. So, we are going to take a look at each nation to see who the selectors could surprise everyone with at this year's showpiece event and why.
The 2020 ICC T20 World Cup is edging closer and closer. Each team will begin to gear themselves towards it with a lot of T20I matches and series coming up over the year prior to the big climax in October and November. Many people may think the squads are just about sorted for some of the smaller nations while bigger nations' fans may be tricked into thinking every option has been or is currently being explored, bar the potential headline news returns of MS Dhoni and AB de Villiers, which, let's face it, wouldn't be a great deal of a surprise.
It's the perplexing selections we are after this time though, ones that get one group of people applauding the bravery of the selectors while simultaneously causing another group to groan as they read the squad list of their favorite team.
Who can forget the surprise call-ups in the 2016 edition of Peter Nevill of Australia, Saqlain Sajib of Bangladesh, Pawan Negi and Harbhajan Singh of India, Khalid Latif of Pakistan or 16-year-old Waqas Khan and the most shocking Ryan Campbell, at age 44, both for Hong Kong?
There are always a whole host of shocking selections that either turn out to be strokes of genius or absolute disasters, so let's take a look at who some of these potential surprises could be, and don't call me crazy!
#1 Shafiqullah Ghafari
This one might not be a surprise at all by the time the squad announcements come round. But, right now, it would be a shock. With Nabi, Rashid and Mujeeb in the XI and Sharafuddin, Qais and Zahir vying for a squad place or two, Shafiqullah Ghafari will have his work cut out.
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However, his Under-19 World Cup has been miraculous so far, with his best moment coming against a seemingly out of their depth South Africa, where he claimed a stunning 6-15, followed it up against the United Arab Emirates with 5-23 then tormented South Africa once again with 4-15. Oh, did we mention, he can also bat a bit too? Rashid Khan watch your back!
#2 Fawad Ahmed
After all the hype in the last two years, an international return seems very slim now for 38-year-old Fawad Ahmed, but if the Australian selectors feel inspired by Imran Tahir, they might give the wily veteran one final crack in the baggy green.
His form isn't as good as it was, say last year, but if the selectors feel like a different flavor and with options slimmed after Chris Green's dramatic banning due to action, Green's best friend Fawad may sneak his way in and I would wager than when he gets in, he's going to make it very hard to take him out.