Former India cricketer Deep Dasgupta has dropped an exciting name in Ravindra Jadeja while picking Team India’s squad for the 2019 World Cup, starting May 30 in London. The cricketer-turned-commentator Dasgupta believes being as an analyst; he might be wrong. But at the same time, he backs himself that his prediction for the Men in Blue’s squad would be too close, this time around.
“I must say that I have been wrong on occasions. But hey, what’s the fun if we don’t even take chances with our gut feeling? I have a feeling I won’t be off the mark this time,” Dasgupta wrote in his exclusive column for the Cricket Country.
Jaydev or Khaleel?
Dasgupta has backed Jaydev Unadkat while tossing up between him and exciting left-arm paceman Khaleel Ahmed. Unadkat, who led Saurashtra to the final of Ranji Trophy, bagged 59 wickets in eight matches.
However, Saurashtra lost the grand finale against high-flying Vidarbha.
Moreover, Dasgupta asserted the middle order woes had been a concern for India. But of late, the players have had shouldered the responsibility which is a good sign. He has settled with Ambati Rayudu to do a bulk of the job.
The 41-year-old Dasgupta further maintained the squad for the quadrennial event is settled following India’s five-match One-day International (ODI) series win (4-1) over New Zealand. He added the squad announced for Kiwis tour in the first place, will book a berth for the United Kingdom (UK), unless and until there won’t be any injury scare.
“I feel that India’s squad for the 2019 ICC Cricket World Cup is all but fixed after the 4-1 series win against New Zealand. Unless there is a miracle or some serious injury concerns, the original squad members for the New Zealand series are the ones who will collect their boarding passes for the Heathrow-bound flight in May,” Dasgupta added.
Competition between Karthik and Pant:
On the other side, there is a toss-up between Dinesh Karthik and Rishabh Pant as a wicketkeeper-batsman. Dasgupta believes there is a lot left for Shubhman Gill. But he is going to miss the forthcoming ICC’s major event.
Interestingly, Dasgupta has thrown his weight behind Kedar Jadhav. Besides, Vijay Shankar has impressed him with his recent show in New Zealand.
At the top, Rohit Sharma and Shikhar Dhawan will be in business. However, KL Rahul has missed out in his squad.
In conclusion, he believes the upcoming edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL) will also play its role in finalising the squad for the World Cup.
On June 5th, India will kick off their World Cup campaign against South Africa in Southampton.
Here’s his squad of India for the 2019 World Cup:
Shikhar Dhawan, Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli (capt), Ambati Rayudu, Kedar Jadhav, MS Dhoni (wk), Hardik Pandya, Kuldeep Yadav, Yuzvendra Chahal, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Shami, Dinesh Karthik/Rishabh Pant, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Vijay Shankar, Khaleel Ahmed/Jaydev Unadkat.