Matthew Hayden, the former Australian cricket team opener, revealed his surprising picks for India’s ICC World Cup 2023 squad. Notably, he chose to include Ishan Kishan and Sanju Samson as wicket-keeping options, while Ravindra Jadeja and Axar Patel secured spots as specialist spinners.
Interestingly, KL Rahul was selected primarily as a batter. In a surprising turn, Kuldeep Yadav and Yuzvendra Chahal were left out of the squad. The specialist batter lineup included Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, Shubman Gill, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul, and Suryakumar Yadav, with Kishan and Samson handling the wicket-keeping duties.
In the realm of bowling, the spin department was led by Jadeja and Axar, while the fast bowling responsibilities were entrusted to Mohammed Shami, Mohammed Siraj, Shardul Thakur, and Jasprit Bumrah. The versatile Hardik Pandya secured his place as an all-rounder, capable of contributing a full quota of overs if required by the team.
In an earlier instance, Hayden expressed his thoughts on Yuzvendra Chahal’s exclusion from the Asia Cup 2023 selection, acknowledging the challenge faced by selectors due to the presence of another talented leg-spinner, Kuldeep Yadav.
Matthew Hayden’s choices for India’s 15-player squad in the ICC World Cup 2023 are as follows: Rohit Sharma (Captain), Jasprit Bumrah, Virat Kohli, Shubman Gill, Shreyas Iyer, Sanju Samson, KL Rahul, Suryakumar Yadav, Ravindra Jadeja, Hardik Pandya, Mohammed Shami, Mohammed Siraj, Shardul Thakur, Ishan Kishan, and Axar Patel.