Kuldeep Yadav, Rishabh Pant very unlucky to miss out: MSK Prasad

NEW DELHI: India's 15-man Indian squad for the team's defense of the ICC Champions Trophy, scheduled to be played between June 1-18 in England and Wales, wears a distinct look of familiarity, which the chairman of selectors was eager to clarify did not mean that the picks were straightforward.

From the last ODI series India played - against England at home in January - there were just two changes, of which one was forced by injury. The legspinner Amit Mishra was dropped for Mohammed Shami, giving the squad its fifth pace-bowling option, while Rohit Sharma returned for his first international assignment in over seven months. Had regular opener KL Rahul been fit, he would have opened the innings at the Champions Trophy with Rohit.

The need for an extra fast bowler as opposed to a third spinner makes sense given the expected nature of pitches in England - India's three league matches are at Edgbaston and London's Kennington Oval - and considering the management's faith in Shami since he made his return to international cricket last July, his selection was expected. India's senior selection committee, stated the chief selector MSK Prasad on Monday, did not have any easy time picking this squad, and that five players - among them Rishabh Pant and Kuldeep Yadav - came very close to being selected.

"There were many challenges for us to pick a squad for a tournament in England, and we discussed several names who are unlucky to miss out," said Prasad. "The team was also selected keeping in mind the calendar after the Champions Trophy, and it is the most balanced squad we could pick. It is a mix of seniors and youngsters. The main names we discussed were Rishabh Pant, Kuldeep Yadav, Suresh Raina, Dinesh Karthik and Shardul Thakur. Each of them are in our standby list for the Champions Trophy. We are looking at sorting visas for them, and they will train at the NCA."

Of the five aforementioned players, Prasad said that Pant, the 19-year-old wicketkeeper-batsman from Delhi, and left-arm chinaman bowler Kuldeep were the ones on whom most of the discussions centered. "Kuldeep would have been a very solid player for us. He narrowly missed out, but has a big role to play for India in the future," he said. "Rishabh Pant was also discussed, and he is a very fine player. Its not like we don't have youngsters in the team - we have Jasprit Bumrah and Hardik Pandya, who we've been grooming. We are extremely pleased with Rishabh Pant and will groom him too."

Asked about the absence of a reserve wicketkeeper in the squad - Pant and Karthik were the leading candidates - Prasad put his support firmly behind Dhoni, who stepped down from the limited-overs captaincy in January. "I believe MS Dhoni is still the best wicketkeeper in the world, and he offers tremendous support to Virat Kohli. When we discuss Dhoni, it is about his role as a batsman, and some of you talk about his ability not being as good as before, but we value him tremendously. If you see over the past few years, his wicketkeeping has not suffered at all. He is the best wicketkeeper we have."

Critics may point to the fact that R Ashwin has not played during the IPL on account of injury, and that his limited-overs form has been patchy, but Prasad doused any such flames. "It's not like Ashwin is out form. He's had time to rest and we've been grooming him for the Champions Trophy. His was not a difficult decision. He's had rest, and is not like those players who have had surgery," he said.

Shikhar Dhawan has been retained as opener, having scored 388 runs in 11 innings for defending IPL champions Sunrisers Hyderabad, but Prasad said that India have a third option in Ajinkya Rahane, who in the last 12 months has opened the innings six times each with returns 144 runs. "Ajinkya is the reserve opener who can be used in England," he said.

India have been pooled with South Africa, Pakistan and Sri Lanka in Group B. Kohli's team is scheduled to open its campaign on June 4 at Edgbaston against Pakistan, followed by matches with Sri Lanka on June 8 and South Africa on June 11, both at Kennington Oval.


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