On the deadline of final squad announcement for the ICC Cricket World Cup 2023, as was hotly anticipated, India made were forced to make a last-minute change. Axar Patel, who picked up an injury during the Asia Cup in Sri Lanka, lost his place in the squad and the vacant spot went to Ravichandran Ashwin.
Interestingly, Ashwin played his first ODI in nearly 20 months during the recent three-match series between India and Australia. However, the veteran put up a solid show across the two matches be was part of to present a strong case for himself.
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However, before Ashwin’s arrival, it was Washington Sundar who seemed to have emerged as the first contender to replace Axar after having been flown to Sri Lanka a day before the Asia Cup final.
The fact that he also was part of India’s playing XI for the title clash raised hopes that should Axar not get fit in time, Sundar will enter the world cup squad,
As it turned out, it wasn’t the case.
India legend Yuvraj Singh also thought that since Sundar is a left-handed batter and also bowls offspin, he would be the one to get the call for the ODI showpiece.
“With Axar not there we have to wait and see who will bat at No. 7. I was thinking if Washington Sundar would have played in place of Axar then India would have had another left-hander. But unfortunately, he did not get picked and so did Yuzvendra Chahal. But otherwise, I feel the combination is fine,” Yuvraj told Hindustan times.
Yuvraj also thinks that India should stick to their current batting order and give a consistent run to both KL Rahul and Shreyas Iyer since they have just returned after a long injury layoff.
“So whoever between KL and Iyer bats at No. 4, I don’t think India should chop and change anymore because both are coming back from an injury and both need gametime,” he said.
India will take on England today in Guwahati in their first warm-up fixture of the ODI World Cup. The Rohit Sharma-led side will play one more warm-up before returning to action for their opening clash against Australia on October 8 in Chennai.
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