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Team India recently finished their white-ball tour of Sri Lanka. Like every other team, they are also focusing hard on the upcoming T20 World Cup, scheduled to take place at Oman and United Arab Emirates (UAE) in October-November later this year.
As the mega event is coming near, experts of the captivating game have started revealing their picks from different teams. Following the bandwagon, former India cricketer Saba Karim has named his India squad for the marquee event.
Starting with the top-order, Karim went with Rohit Sharma, KL Rahul and Virat Kohli. While Rohit and Kohli are already huge names in the fascinating game, Rahul would look at the global tournament as a platform to roll back into form after being inactive from competitive cricket in the recent past.
Karim picked Shreyas Iyer and Suryakumar Yadav for the middle-order while Rishabh Pant and Ishan Kishan as wicketkeepers. Karim said that he selected Iyer because he played the T20I series against England earlier this year. The cricketer-turned-commentator reckoned that though Iyer did not play in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2021 due to injury, his previous season went really well.
“I have kept Shreyas Iyer because he was also in the team which had played against England, and his performance was quite good there. He couldn’t play the IPL this year, but his performance in the IPL was quite good last year. So, there has to be a basis to keep him out of the team,” Karim told India News.
Karim went with Hardik Pandya and Ravindra Jadeja as all-rounders, whereas he picked Washington Sundar and Rahul Chahar for the spinners role. Interestingly, Karim didn’t go with Yuzvendra Chahal, who is currently the highest wicket-taker for India in the shortest format. Chahal has so far taken 63 wickets in 49 games.
“I have kept Washington Sundar in my team. I feel that with the matches happening in the UAE, you will need an off-spinner there, and he is kind of an all-rounder. Along with him, I have kept Rahul Chahar because I feel he is an attacking bowler, a wicket-taking bowler, a match-winner,” added the 53-year-old.
The Patna-born mentioned that he is keeping Bhuvneshwar Kumar in the team because the right-armer is extremely crucial for Team India.
“I am still keeping Bhuvneshwar Kumar in the team because I feel his form is coming back, and he will be very essential for the Indian team,” Karim added further.
Saba Karim’s India squad for T20 World Cup:
Rohit Sharma, KL Rahul, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, Ishan Kishan, Suryakumar Yadav, Rishabh Pant, Hardik Pandya, Washington Sundar, T Natarajan, Jasprit Bumrah, Ravindra Jadeja, Rahul Chahar, Deepak Chahar, Bhuvneshwar Kumar.
