KL Rahul, Mayank Agarwal And Shardul Thakur Misses Out As India Announce 15-Member Squad for WTC Final
India on Tuesday unveiled a 15-member squad for the all-important World Test Championship (WTC) final against New Zealand starting June 18 at the Hampshire Bowl.
World number 1 in Tests, Team India, will lock horns with Kane Williamson’s New Zealand in the final of the inaugural edition of World Test Championship, starting June 18. Both the captains will have their eyes on the trophy which will declare the winner as the champion of the longest format of the game.
Meanwhile, the Board Of Control for Cricket in India, on Tuesday announced 15-member squad for the World Test Championship final. This comes hours after the Black Caps revealed their squad for the illustrious tie.
The squad has six batsmen, two wicketkeeper-batsman, two spin bowling all-rounders and five pacers. Axar Patel, KL Rahul, Shardul Thakur, Mayank Agarwal, Washington Sundar have been left out of the set-up.
The absence of the Karnataka duo of KL Rahul and Mayank Agarwal has undoubtedly raises many eyebrows in the cricket fraternity. Their absence means India will stick with Rohit Sharma and Shubman Gill. The lack of runs for Gill in the home series against England and the subsequent IPL meant there were a few murmurs about Agarwal’s return to the playing XI but those have been quashed for now.
India’s Squad For WTC Final:
Rohit Sharma, Shubman Gill, Cheteshwar Pujara, Virat Kohli (Captain), Ajinkya Rahane (vice-captain), Hanuma Vihari, Rishabh Pant (wicket-keeper), R. Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Jasprit Bumrah, Ishant Sharma, Mohammed Shami, Mohammed Siraj, Umesh Yadav, Wriddhiman Saha
Shardul Thakur’s absence leaves India with five pacers to choose from: Jasprit Bumrah, Ishant Sharma, Mohammed Shami, Mohammed Siraj and Umesh Yadav. It is the bowling combination that India will ponder hardest about: whether to play four pacers or three pacers and two spinners.
