Who said what - Top 5 experts' reactions on India's squad for Asia Cup 2023

On Monday, August 21, Team India captain Rohit Sharma and chief selector Ajit Agarkar announced India's 17-man squad selected for the upcoming Asia Cup 2023.

While the selection was mostly on expected lines, the exclusion of a couple of players sparked a debate over the selection.

Players, including Sanju Samson and Yuzvendra Chahal, were left out of the group. Tilak Varma, who showed great potential in the IPL and on the West Indies tour, found a way into the squad. Samson, however, will travel with the team as a reserve.

Several former cricketers and pundits shared their thoughts on the selected Indian squad and voiced their opinions on social media or TV.

On that note, here are the top five experts' reactions on India's squad for the Asia Cup 2023.

#5 Matthew Hayden

On the same day as the announcement of India's squad, Matthew Hayden attended the CEAT Cricket Rating Award ceremony held in Mumbai. There, he addressed some questions related to the Indian team for the Asia Cup 2023.

Crediting the management for picking a strong squad, Hayden emphasised that selecting youngsters will put much-needed pressure on middle-order batters to perform.

"They've (India) have got some good problems to solve through the middle order. And if they can fill spots with talented young players like Tilak Varma, put pressure on someone like Suryakumar Yadav, I think that's a good strategy. Keep everyone honest in the side and performing. So, not a bad move. I think it's a great side," Hayden said at the event.

Apart from this, the former Australian legend also commented on the exclusion of Yuzvendra Chahal from the team. Hayden termed not selecting Chahal for Asia Cup as a ‘big omission'.

"There are some big omissions. Chahal, in particular, that leg-spinner is such a superb player and (it) must be tough for the selectors because they’ve also got another one in Kuldeep (Yadav)…. he’s a superb player. So, they’ve gone for that as an option."

With Kuldeep being highly successful in white-ball cricket for India lately, his selection was a no-brainer for the management. Chahal's form, however, has seen a dip as batters have started to read him a bit more than previously.

#4 Tom Moody

Tom Moody with India's current head coach Rahul Dravid [Getty Images]

Another former Aussie cricketer, Tom Moody, shared his views on the Indian squad. The 57-year-old liked India's decision to give Tilak Varma a look-in and termed the selection "brave" and a "smart" one.

Talking to Star Sports, Moody said:

"I think it's a wonderful selection (Tilak Varma's). I'll call it brave, but I also call it in the same breath, smart. He (Tilak) is clearly a player on the rise, as I touched on earlier. He’s got not only skill but an enormous temperament, and he is showing that on a regular basis."

Tilak Varma has shown a great temperament time and again while playing for the Mumbai Indians in the IPL and in his recent entry into international cricket. In the IPL, the left-hander has scored 740 runs at an average of 38.9 and at a strike rate of 144.53 across 25 matches.

#3 Aakash Chopra

Aakash Chopra feels that Sanju Samson might feel unfortunate to miss out on the squad [Getty Images]

Ex-Indian cricketer and famous broadcaster Aakash Chopra also opined his views by sharing a video on his YouTube channel on Tuesday, August 22.

Chopra feels Sanju Samson might consider himself slightly unlucky not to be picked ahead of either Suryakumar Yadav or Tilak Varma in India's main Asia Cup squad.

"The first big news is that Sanju Samson's name is not there. In whose place could his name have come? He would have come in place of either Tilak or Surya. He could have become a part of the 17 in place of either of them."

The former batter also observed that Samson might feel hard done by since he has a great record in one-day internationals. The 45-year-old remarked that:

"Sanju Samson's fans and Sanju Samson himself might consider themselves slightly unlucky because his performances are good in ODIs as of now as well. He has an average of over 50 and he scored a fifty in the West Indies also. There is no doubt that he plays well. He has a little work experience as well."

In his 13-ODI long career, Samson has amassed 390 runs thus far. Impressively, the Kerala-born batter averages 55.90 in those games, hitting three half-centuries in the process.

#2 Sourav Ganguly

Sourav Ganguly believes India are a great side [Getty]

Former India skipper and ex-BCCI president Sourav Ganguly lauded the Indian team ahead of the Asia Cup and said that the Men in Blue are one of the strongest sides in the world.

With Jasprit Bumrah returning after an injury, Ganguly waxed lyrical about the Indian pace attack. He also suggested that the side should play determined cricket at the forthcoming World Cup and the Asia Cup.

Talking in a Star Sports promo, Ganguly said:

"It is a very strong team. Bumrah is back. This makes it even stronger. The bowling attack is very good. Shami, Bumrah, Siraj - you can't get a better fast bowling attack. And the spin, Jadeja, the wirst spinners, India is is a fantastic side - they just have to play good determined cricket in Asia Cup and World Cup."

Ganguly also opined that India has a lot of options for the No. 4 position in their ODI side and stressed that one position alone will not win important tournaments like the World Cup. He said the team management should zero in on one player and give him a long rope at the No. 4 slot.

"India has enormous talent. I keep hearing about this...we don't have this or that, but we have too much and that is the problem that we cannot decide. The No. 4 ... Rahul (Dravid), selectors and Rohit (Sharma) need to decide that 'this is my No. 4 and I will continue with him'. One batting slot does not make much of a difference," Ganguly said.

If fully fit, India are likely to go with Shreyas Iyer at No. 4 at the marquee event. Iyer has played 20 ODI innings at No. 4 for India, making 805 runs at an average of 47.35. His two ODI centuries also came while batting at that position.

#1 Gautam Gambhir

Gautam Gambhir feels that India should only include in-form players in their team [Getty Images]

Rohit Sharma, during the press conference on Tuesday, said that India needed to include a left-hander in the middle order.

While it is fair to say that left-handers add variety to a batting order, former World Cup winner Gautam Gambhir feels that the issue surrounding the team not having a left-hander is useless.

The southpaw added that players should be selected based on their merit and not on any other criteria.

Voicing that India should only look at a particular batter's form against each bowler and in all conditions, Gambhir told Star Sports that:

"This debate about who is a left-hander or a right-hander or whether we need three left-handers is a useless debate. We look at quality, we do not look to see how many left-handers are in the squad. If the batsman is good regardless of whether he is a right-hander or a left-hander, we should see how he performs in every condition and against each bowler."

Gambhir continued his take on the matter and said that the management should only look at quality and not quantity.

"If Tilak Varma is in good form, then select him. If Shreyas Iyer or KL Rahul are in good form, then select them. It's not a compulsion that you have to keep a left-hander in the squad or that you need to have three left-handers in the line-up. If we are focusing on left-handers, then what about Yashasvi Jaiswal and other left-handers? But you look at quality, don't you, not quantity,"

India will begin their Asia Cup campaign against their fierce rivals Pakistan in Pallekele on September 2, 2023.