ICC World Cup 2019 Team India Squad Announcement , Dinesh Karthik included, Rishabh Pant excluded
India’s 15-man squad for the upcoming ICC Cricket World Cup in England and Wales was announced at the BCCI headquarters in Mumbai on April 15. Rishabh Pant and Ambati Rayudu were the biggest exclusions as India named the 15-member squad for ICC World Cup 2019. The team, which will be led by Virat Kohli, included Dinesh Karthik as the second wicket-keeper besides MS Dhoni.
India’s 15-member World Cup Team:
Virat Kohli (Captain)
Rohit Sharma (Vice Captain)
Shikhar Dhawan
KL Rahul
Vijay Shankar
MS Dhoni
Kedar Jadhav
Dinesh Karthik
Yuzvendra Chahal
Kuldeep Yadav
Bhuvneshwar Kumar
Jasprit Bumrah
Hardik Pandya
Ravindra Jadeja
Mohd Shami
The announcement was being awaited with great anticipation, especially since the date was declared a while ago, with most of the conjecture surrounding who would be India’s crucial No. 4 batsman. The squad was announced by Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) Acting Honorary Secretary Amitabh Choudhary, with Chairman of Selectors MSK Prasad sharing the dais.
KL Rahul has been included as a backup opener to Rohit Sharma and Shikhar Dhawan. The confirmed India squad includes Virat Kohli (Capt), Rohit Sharma (vc), Shikhar Dhawan, KL Rahul, Vijay Shankar, MSD (wk), Kedar Jadhav, Dinesh Karthik, Yuzvendra Chahal, Kuldeep Yadav, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Jasprit Bumrah, Hardik Pandya, Ravindra Jadeja, Mohd Shami.
Virat Kohli, MS Dhoni, Rohit Sharma and some of the other big names in Indian cricket are all busy leading their respective franchises in the ongoing Indian Premier League (IPL).
While most of the seniors will not be fretting over it, a number World Cup hopefuls as well as fringe players will be waiting for the big announcement by the MSK Prasad-led selection panel on 15 April, that of the final squad for the mega event that takes place later this summer in England and Wales.
“The second wicketkeeper comes into play only if Mahi (Mahendra Singh Dhoni) is injured. We went ahead with Karthik because of his experience in big matches,” Prasad said while announcing the squad here. The side, expectedly led by Virat kohli, comprises five specialist batsmen, two wicket-keepers, three fast bowlers, three all-rounders and two specialist spinners.
Karthik, the oldest Indian player in terms of international debut (three months before Mahendra Singh Dhoni in September 2004), was also part of the Indian squad during its disastrous 2007 World Cup campaign. He, however, missed the bus in 2011 and the 2015 editions.
As reported by PTI earlier, Prasad confirmed that Shankar is being seen as a potential number four candidate along with Rahul and Kedar Jadhav.
