Former Indian captain and ex-chairman of the selection committee Kris Srikkanth said that if he was the Chairman of selection committee then Pacer Mahommad Shami definitely be in the squad of Team India for Asia Cup 2022.
The All-India Senior Selection Committee on Monday announced the 14-members squad for the upcoming Asia Cup. This year’s highly anticipated Asia Cup cricket event will begin on August 27.
“In my team, Shami was literally there. If I was the Chairman of the selection committee, I think Shami would have been there and probably, I would not have gone with Ravi Bishnoi. But I still believe that Axar Patel was a serious contender in my team. It would have been a big toss-up between Axar Patel and Ashwin,” said Srikkanth during the show ‘Follow The Blues’ on Star Sports.
Kris Srikkanth said that the Team is strong but he feels that third pacer in squad is required. He also feel awful on exclusion of Akshar Patel’s from Squad.
“I am very happy for Deepak Hooda – he can bowl a bit, he is a good hitter and he’s a good striker of the ball. What I like about Deepak Hooda is that he is a good striker of the ball, he is a flirter. Otherwise, this squad is a fantastic squad, only feel bad for Axar Patel. I still believe that he’s a good bowling all-rounder, may be in Australia conditions. I am not going for just the Asia Cup, but yes, this must be a blueprint for the ICC T20 World Cup also,” he added.
“It has been too many innings. The other batsmen also have been performing really well. Overall, the squad looks good, and well-balanced. There are good all-rounders too – R Ashwin has been batting well. Definitely, Axar Patel has been performing well throughout the year too.”
“I like the team combination and I was really happy with Ravi Bishnoi’s selection. It brought a variation to the team. According to me, this is a good team. I am also happy for Arshdeep Singh. He has been performing well in the IPL against West Indies, where he was the Player of the Series and bowled well. We were in search of a left-arm bowler, who we have found in Arshdeep Singh,” he added.
Asia Cup 2022 will start from 27 August and Final will be played on 11th September. India will kick start their campaign from 28th August where they will play there first match against Pakistan in Dubai Cricket Stadium.
Six teams will compete in the 15th edition of the tournament in the United Arab Emirates (main event). India, who are the current winners, has won the trophy seven times, making them the most successful team overall. The Previous edition was played in ODI Format in 2018 but this time it will be played in T20 Format.
India’s Squad for Asia Cup:
Rohit Sharma (Captain), KL Rahul (vice-captain), Virat Kohli, Suryakumar Yadav, Deepak Hooda, Rishabh Pant (wicket-keeper), Dinesh Karthik (wicket-keeper), Hardik Pandya, Ravindra Jadeja, R. Ashwin, Yuzvendra Chahal, Ravi Bishnoi, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Arshdeep Singh and Avesh Khan.
Indian Star Pacers Jasprit Bumrah and Harshal Patel are misses out from the squad due to injuries. They will compete their rehabilitation at National Cricket Academy (NCA) in Benguluru.
Three players – Shreyas Iyer, Axar Patel and Deepak Chahar have been named as standbys.
