Offspinner R Ashwin is likely to replace left-arm spinner Axar Patel in India’s final 15 for the 2023 World Cup. This decision comes as Axar Patel, who leftv with a quadriceps strain, needs at least three more weeks to recover fully.
Today is the deadline for teams to make changes to their World Cup squads, and any further changes will require the consent of the World Cup’s technical committee.
R Ashwin’s inclusion may come as something of a surprise, as he was not part of the initial 15-man squad announced by the BCCI in late August. At the time, India’s chief selector Ajit Agarkar had mentioned that Ashwin was one of the contenders, but the selectors and the team management had opted for Axar Patel, who they believed provided batting depth.
Ashwin’s ODI record
Ashwin is set to be the sole specialist offspinner in India’s World Cup squad, boasting 115 ODIs’ worth of experience, during which he has secured 155 wickets at an economy rate of 4.94. He made his ODI debut a year prior to the 2011 World Cup and played a crucial role in India’s victorious campaign, contributing four wickets in two matches. Additionally, he featured in the 2015 World Cup held in Australia, where he delivered an impressive performance, taking 13 wickets across eight matches. However, he was not included in India’s 2019 World Cup squad in England.
However, with Axar’s injury and Washington Sundar replacing him for the Asia Cup, Ashwin was included in the three-match ODI series against Australia that followed, where he played the first two games, taking wickets and impressing with his performance.
Rahul Dravid, India’s head coach, had previously stated that there were no changes to the World Cup squad, but following the update on Axar Patel’s recovery time, Ashwin is expected to be included in the squad.
Rohit Sharma was impressed with Ashwin’s performance in the first 2 ODIs against Australia. He said:
“Ashwin has got the class, he’s got experience of playing the sport and handling the pressure. It’s just that he hasn’t played ODIs [for] a year or so. But you cannot take away the class and the experience that the individual has over the years, and in the last couple of games [against Australia], we saw how well he bowled. He’s got a lot of variations up his sleeves.”
India’s likely Squad
Rohit Sharma (capt), Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul (wk), Ishan Kishan (wk), Suryakumar Yadav, Hardik Pandya (vice-capt), Ravindra Jadeja, Kuldeep Yadav, Shardul Thakur, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Shami, Mohammed Siraj, and R Ashwin.
Stay updated with all the cricketing action, follow Cricadium on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram
