Decoding IPL 2024: Key Insights for India’s T20 World Cup Squad Selection
IPL 2024 will play a vital role in Team India’s T20 World Cup Selection.
Ajit Agarkar, leading the BCCI selection committee, will scrutinize IPL 2024 for India’s T20 World Cup selection. This season’s IPL transcends mere team competition, doubling as the BCCI’s talent search arena for assembling a T20 World Cup-winning squad.
When India’s T20 World Cup schedule was released, there were questions about whether the 11 T20I matches spread across three series—against Australia (5 at home), South Africa (3 away), and Afghanistan (3 at home)—would be sufficient for the selectors to choose the final 15 players for the ICC event in June. This was especially true given that some of the veterans almost completely skipped the matches in order to recover from the taxing ODI World Cup or to remain fit for the lengthy England Test series.
Later on, India’s head coach Rahul Dravid provided clarification, saying, “We will have the IPL and everyone will be watching closely to see how some of those guys play and what are the slots we need to fill in the team.” What’s more, the T20 World Cup is supposed to start five days after the IPL championship. As a result, the IPL will serve as more than just a competition between ten teams for the trophy; it will also serve as a testing ground for the BCCI selection committee, directed by Ajit Agarkar, to choose a champion team that might finally break India’s protracted trophy drought in international cricket.
Who are the Foregone Conclusions?
The two players for whom the BCCI need to have begun preparing visas are Suryakumar Yadav and Jasprit Bumrah. Then, of course, is Rohit Sharma, who earlier this month received confirmation from BCCI secretary Jay Shah that he will captain the team.
Yashasvi Jaiswal, who has all but guaranteed his spot as Rohit’s opening partner, should also be added to the roster. Kuldeep Yadav and Ravindra Jadeja follow. And Virat Kohli—how can we overlook him? That takes care of seven berths, leaving the remaining eight to be decided by the IPL.
On Virat Kohli’s Selection
In the past several years, Rohit’s lackluster performance at the bat has cost him the captaincy of the Mumbai Indians. In contrast, Kohli has enjoyed significantly more reliable IPL seasons. Among all batters, he has scored the fifth-most runs (1851) in the last four seasons. But Kohli’s strike rate has always been a point of contention in Twenty20 cricket, particularly when facing spinners and in middle overs.
Kohli’s strike rate of 116.27 is the lowest of 20 hitters who have faced at least 500 deliveries in middle overs (7–16) since the IPL 2020. To make matters worse, it takes him nearly twice as long (10.6 balls) to score a boundary in this phase as it does for the two best middle-over batsmen of the era, Sanju Samson (SR of 152.87; boundary rate of 5.3) and Suryakumar Yadav (SR of 150.59; boundary rate of 4.8).
When facing a spinner during this batting phase, Kohli’s strike rate drops even further to 105.53, the lowest among the 18 batsmen (minimum 300 deliveries), with a boundary every 14.7 overs.
This is exactly what the Telegraph investigation a few days ago brought to light, suggesting that it might have contributed to Kohli’s exclusion from India’s World Cup squad. The report caused quite a commotion in the cricket world. However, there are other facets of cricket besides math-based reasoning. When it comes to ICC events in particular, there is more on the line for the selectors than just choosing the side.
The Most Competitive Spot
And that’s what a wicketkeeper-batter does. After playing six of the eleven Twenty20 International matches for India since November 2023, Jitesh Sharma—who was promoted to vice captain of the Punjab Kings for the IPL 2024 season—made an impression with both his six-hitting prowess and ability to close off games. Ishan Kishan participated in three additional games and achieved two fifty-score runs at a strike rate of 144.73, which was nearly identical to Jitesh’s (148.43).
Sanju Samson and KL Rahul are the other candidates for the position, assuming the latter is able to modify his style of play and play middle-order for the Lucknow Super Giants in the 2024 Indian Premier League. However, Rishabh Pant, who is scheduled to make his comeback to the sport following that tragic accident in December 2022, might emerge victorious in this contest. Moreover, Dhruv Jurel left a lasting impression during the most recent England Test series.
The Backup Options for Hardik Pandya
If Hardik Pandya stays healthy till the 2024 Indian Premier League, he will surely be the team’s first-choice pace all-rounder. However, considering his injury history, India will require a backup, and the selectors here only have Shivam Dube to fill that position. However, this season, the Chennai Super Kings (CSK) player will have to demonstrate his value with the ball.
Dominant Hitters Against Spin and Death Bowling Options
India would be vulnerable against spin if Rohit and Kohli are selected for the squad and then the XI. In fact, Kohli’s strike rate of 108.2 is the second lowest of the 42 batters who have faced more than 200 deliveries against the variety in the last four IPL seasons. With strike rates of 124.78 and 126.83 against spinners, respectively, even players like Hardik and Rohit have had difficulty.
Samson, whose strike rate of 155.09 is the third-highest overall and the best among Indian hitters, will therefore be the focus of the selectors. Dube (148.20) is the next best Indian batsman. Shubman Gill (139.75), Jaiswal (144.62), and Ruturaj Gaikwad (142.59) all have strong numbers against spinners.
With Rinku Singh emerging as a strong finisher in the race, India will also need a strong finisher. The left-hander’s strike rate of 202.30 against pacers in the slog overs is the highest by an Indian batsman since the 2020 Indian Premier League (minimum 150 balls). Dube, against, with a 160 strike rate, is also on the list. Therefore, if Dube is able to replicate his IPL 2023 performance this season, selectors may be considering picking him only for his batting skills in addition to his all-around ability.
Bumrah’s Co-partners
To go with Bumrah in the pace line-up, selectors will be searching for not one, but two fast bowlers, as Mohammed Shami is all but out of the running to make the T20 World Cup roster. Mohammed Siraj may be one, while Mukesh Kumar and Arshdeep Singh are vying for the third place.
