As soon as the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) announced the squad of Team India for T20 World Cup 2021, it attracted attention from all corners. Fans were happy to see the return of high-quality off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin, and they were even happier to see former India skipper MS Dhoni joining the team as a mentor for the upcoming global competition.
But the absence of few players did raise some eyebrows, as several admirers and experts of the game showed their disappointment. One of the major talking points after the team announcement was the omission of senior India batter Shikhar Dhawan.
The left-handed batsman is India’s third-highest run-getter (1759) in the shortest format after Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma. That’s one of the prime reasons why many supporters expressed shock after not seeing Dhawan in the 15-member squad.
Former India cricketer Farokh Engineer also shared his views on the red-hot topic. During a chat show on Sports Tak, Farokh termed Dhawan as an ‘exceptional’ batter and said his omission took him by surprise. The 83-year-old expressed his disappointment stating that the Delhi-lad has proved himself many times and a player of his calibre shouldn’t be dropped.
“Shikhar Dhawan… well, I’m surprised that he has been omitted because he has come in and done exceptionally well. But that is such a major problem for the Indian selectors that players like Dhawan are getting to be dropped, which is a huge disappointment because he would walk into any international team as a batsman. He has proved himself time and again, and I don’t think a player of his calibre should be on trial,” said Farokh.
However, Farokh backed KL Rahul, who was given preference ahead of Dhawan, to do well in the multi-team tournament. The former international reckoned the apex India board has picked a good team that has every chance of winning the global showpiece event.
“But who do you drop? KL Rahul has done very well. He is superb; one of the best batsmen in the world, I think. Rohit Sharma is on top of his form. Still, I think it’s a very good team they have picked, and I think we have every chance of winning the T20 World Cup,” added Farokh.
