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New Delhi: There was a meeting between BCCI officials, coach Rahul Dravid, chief selector Ajit Agarkar and Rohit Sharma in Delhi in November immediately after the ODI World Cup last year. Most people in that meeting agreed that Virat Kohli was not a natural contender for a place in the team for the 2024 T20 World Cup in America and West Indies.
Apart from Rohit, Virat did not play a single T20 match from 2022 T20 World Cup to 2023 ODI World Cup. This year, before the three-match T20 series against Afghanistan, Virat not only expressed his desire to play in this format, but also declared himself available for the T20 World Cup, after which the team management got confused.
Virat Kohli clarified that
Some top BCCI officials were also reluctant to create controversy by dropping Virat, especially during the election season. Considering Virat's stature and name, he gave signals to Rohit, Dravid and Ajit Agarkar. Since then, Virat has won the Orange Cap by scoring more than 350 runs including a century in seven matches of the current IPL.
According to sources, some time ago Virat had sought clarification from the team management regarding playing in the T20 World Cup. According to the information, the team management has also given them clarification in this regard.
Last week, Dravid, Agarkar and Rohit discussed the squad for the World Cup in June at the BCCI headquarters in Mumbai. Virat plays as an opener in IPL, hence there was talk of fielding Rohit and Virat as openers in the World Cup.
Trouble may increase for two young players
But in such a situation Yashasvi Jaiswal will be out of the final-11. If Rohit-Virat open, then there was a discussion on who should be taken as the alternative opener among Yashasvi and Shubman Gill. When the meeting took place, a lot of pressure was put on Gill based on his IPL performance.
Yashasvi scored more than 700 runs including two double centuries in the Test series against England. In the meeting, there was also discussion about Assam's young all-rounder Riyan Parag, who performed brilliantly in the IPL. If he maintains his form in the next few matches, he can make it to the 15-man squad and catch a flight to America.
Mayank's leaf cut
The name of Delhi's young fast bowler Mayank Yadav was also discussed in the meeting, who was a headache for the batsmen with his pace, but his injury went against him. The selectors believe that taking Mayank could be a risky decision.
Hardik's bowling review
In the meeting, it was also made clear about Hardik Pandya that if he wants to make a place in the team, he will have to perform brilliantly with his bowling in the remaining matches of IPL. The selectors believe that Hardik Pandya will return to the team only if he bowls well. Pandya has not bowled consistently in the IPL and has bowled only in four out of six matches.
Pandya's economy is 12 and he has taken only three wickets. He also did not perform well with the bat and could score only 131 runs in six matches. The selectors, who are keeping an eye on all the players in the IPL, have shown interest in left-arm all-rounder Shivam Dubey to replace Hardik as a fast bowling all-rounder.
All eyes are on Shivam Dubey
Dubey's power-hitting against fast bowlers strengthens the middle order, but the biggest problem with him is that CSK have used him more as an impact player, giving him no chance to bowl. The matter of concern is that if he is selected in such a situation, how effective will he be in bowling.
Hardik has been made the captain of Mumbai Indians in place of Rohit while Rohit is the captain of the Indian T-20 team. BCCI Secretary Jay Shah appointed Rohit as the captain and Hardik as the vice-captain during the five-match Test series against England in Rajkot. In such a situation, it will not be easy for Rohit to oust Hardik on the basis of performance.
There will be a selectors' meeting at the end of April in which the 15-member Indian team will be selected. Not only this, it will also include five additional players, who will act as substitutes in case the player gets injured, because sending immediate substitutes to America and West Indies will not be an easy task.