Predicting India's 15-man squad for the T20 World Cup 2020

We are less than a year away from the T20 World Cup which will be held in Australia. The tournament is back after a gap of four years and hence, there is some buzz around it already. Teams already have one eye on the mega event which will start in October next year. India have been dominant in Test cricket and are not only the No. 1 ranked team but they are also leading the points table of the World Test Championship (WTC). They may have had to bow out in the semi-final of the World Cup earlier this year, but their ODI team has also been doing consistently well. On the other hand, as far as T20Is are concerned, it has been their weakest format. The ‘Men in Blue’ have been pretty inconsistent. Hence, with the T20 World Cup less than a year away, India have begun their preparations and have been playing T20Is frequently in the recent past. Thus, going largely by current form and the present squad, here we try to predict India’s 15 for the T20 World Cup to be played in Australia next year. 1. Rohit Sharma Rohit Sharma. (Photo Source: Twitter) There is absolutely no doubt that Rohit Sharma is one of the best white-ball openers in the world today. He may take his time at the start of the innings but once he’s set it’s very tough to stop him. In fact, if there is a need, he can go berserk right from the get-go as well. The Indian vice-captain has the ability to score big runs irrespective of the format. Ever since he started opening the batting, he’s become a beast. In T20Is, he is currently the second-highest run-getter (2443 runs at an average of 32.14) in the history of the format. Moreover, no player has more hundreds (four) than Rohit in the shortest format in international cricket. Hence, Rohit will be one of the first names on the team list. In the 2019 World Cup, he showed that he is a man for big tournaments. Moreover, the Mumbaikar doesn’t have a great record in World T20s and thus, he will be eager to correct that record. 2. Shikhar Dhawan Shikhar Dhawan. (Photo Source: Twitter) Along with Rohit Sharma, Shikhar Dhawan forms a potent opening pair. The duo has been very successful as an opening pair in white-ball cricket. Most of their success has come in the 50-over format, but they aren’t too behind in T20Is as well. No other pair in world cricket has more runs (1612 runs at an average of 32.89) than the Rohit-Shikhar pair for the opening partnership in T20I cricket. Shikhar Dhawan may not have the best of records in the shortest format. However, he had a wonderful 2018 as a T20 player. No player has scored as many runs as Dhawan in a single calendar year in T20I cricket. He scored 689 runs at an average of 40.53 and at a strike-rate of 147.22 last year. But in general, Dhawan has been a touch inconsistent in the shortest format. However, India prefer to play the left-handed opener in limited-overs cricket and it is his partnership with Rohit that is one of the driving forces. 3. Virat Kohli Virat Kohli. (Photo by Robert Cianflone/Getty Images) There may not be a better all-format player than Virat Kohli in world cricket at the moment. No other player in the history of the game averages in excess of 50 in each of the three formats. Be it Tests, ODIs or T20s, Kohli has consistently churned out runs for India. In the shortest format, the Indian skipper is the leading run-getter in international cricket. He has amassed 2450 runs at an average of 50 in T20 internationals. Moreover, these runs have come at a strike-rate of 135.28. Hence, despite him not playing fancy strokes, Kohli has the ability to up the ante and score at a rapid pace. Moreover, Kohli loves the big stage. In World T20s, the Indian captain has scored 777 runs at an average of 86.33. He was the Man of the Tournament in the last two editions – 2014 and 2016. Thus, he will once again be a key player for the ‘Men in Blue’. 4. Rishabh Pant Rishabh Pant. (Photo by Hagen Hopkins/Getty Images) There has been a lot of noise around Rishabh Pant. Ever since MS Dhoni has made himself unavailable (post the 2019 World Cup), Pant has been India’s preferred choice behind the stumps. Moreover, he has the backing of the Indian team management and the selectors as well. Pant has the ability to change games within a few deliveries. He is one of the few Indian cricketers who can smash the ball for a six right from the first ball. He may not have done justice to his talent in the international arena in T20 cricket. But he is a genuine match-winner and can go berserk when in full flow. Hence, on those good batting conditions in Australia where the bounce is true and the ball comes nicely on to the bat, Pant will be a crucial member of the Indian middle-order. The Delhi stumper’s wicketkeeping has come under the scanner on a few occasions but he is improving every day. 5. Manish Pandey Manish Pandey. (Photo Source: Twitter) Manish Pandey’s name in this squad may come as a surprise. The Karnataka batsman hasn’t had a great deal of success at the international level. However, Pandey has never got an extended run in the Indian team. Most of his chances have been sporadic and distributed all around. Pandey has been around for a while now and has been scoring a lot of runs in domestic cricket. Be it for India ‘A’ or Karnataka, he has constantly turned up and put up significant scores. He was in wonderful form as well where he batted at No. 4 and 5 throughout the tournament and was very successful. He may well play the same role in this Indian T20I team. Moreover, he is a live-wire on the field and saves a lot of runs. 6. KL Rahul KL Rahul. (Photo by Gareth Copley/Getty Images) T20 is probably KL Rahul’s best format at the moment. In 25 T20I innings, he has scored 899 runs at an average of 42.81 which is the third-best in history of the format. Moreover, these runs have come at a strike-rate of 148.11. Hence, Rahul, the T20 player has been excellent for India. However, with Rohit Sharma and Shikhar Dhawan present at the top of the order, Rahul’s opportunities in white-ball cricket have been few and far in between. In fact, there have been a few series’ when India have tried the Karnataka lad at No. 3 and 4 as well and he has been successful at those slots as well. Hence, Rahul can float around anywhere in the order. He can be effective at the top but also can bat at 3 and 4 which makes this Indian batting line-up flexible. Moreover, he can double-up as a backup wicketkeeper as well. 7. Dinesh Karthik Dinesh Karthik. (Photo Source: Twitter) If there is one cricketer who has been slightly unlucky, then it has to be Dinesh Karthik. The Tamil Nadu stumper has constantly been in and out of the side. Despite his good form in white-ball cricket, especially in T20s, Karthik has found himself out of the Indian team. He has been in and around the team in both ODIs and T20Is but hasn’t got an extended run. In fact, he has been a tad iffy in ODI cricket but his form in T20 cricket has been very good. Batting down the order, Karthik has donned the finisher’s role and has played that really well. He gave a glimpse of his ability and what he can do in the Nidahas Trophy final last year. Hence, Karthik can not only be the backup wicketkeeper but also the finisher India are looking for. Batting at No. 5 and 6, he can really turn on the heat at the death. Moreover, he has been in excellent form and showed what he can do in the recently-concluded Vijay Hazare Trophy where he kept bailing Tamil Nadu out of trouble. 8. Krunal Pandya Krunal Pandya. (Photo Source: Twitter) It was about a year ago that Krunal Pandya made his international debut. But he has already become India’s first-choice all-rounder in the playing XI in T20Is. In fact, he has featured in every single T20I game that India have played since the start of November last year. In 16 T20Is, there have been very few opportunities with the bat for Krunal. But with the ball, he has done decently. He has 14 wickets in his 16-game T20I career so far. Moreover, he has been doing well in the IPL. Thus, Krunal’s ability to make an impact with both bot and ball is excellent. He is a consistent four-overs bowler and can be a destructive player at the back end of the innings. 9. Hardik Pandya India batsman Hardik Pandya. (Photo by Stu Forster/Getty Images) Hardik Pandya ended India’s eternal search for a fast-bowling all-rounder. India had been looking for someone who can give in a number of overs and also be effective with the bat. The younger Pandya fit the bill perfectly and has become India’s go-to all-rounder in the last few years. He has been one of India’s key players, especially in white-ball cricket and he has contributed immensely to the balance of the side. If you look at the Baroda all-rounder’s numbers in T20Is, they don’t really show you enough. He generally bats down the order and more often than not has to go hell for leather from ball one. Hence, his average isn’t promising. However, Pandya’s ability to strike big and change the momentum with the bat and also, his knack of picking up wickets is key for the ‘Men in Blue’. Hence, there is no doubt that Pandya will be on that plane to Australia as one of the key players. 10. Ravindra Jadeja Ravindra Jadeja. (Photo by Christopher Lee-IDI/IDI via Getty Images) Ravindra Jadeja has constantly been in and out of the T20I side. After the 2017 Champions Trophy, he was excluded from white-ball cricket but he made a superb comeback in the Asia Cup and hasn’t looked back since. He may not be in the current T20I side that was picked for the series against Bangladesh but Jadeja may be one of the key members for next year’s T20 World Cup. He is currently in the form of his life. Be with the bat, ball or in the field, the Saurashtra all-rounder has been performing like never before. He has been consistent across all formats as well. With the bat, he can be more than useful down the order. Jadeja can up the ante and score at a quick pace and add depth to the batting line-up. With the ball, the left-arm spinner is ever accurate and gives very little away. And in the field, he is arguably one of the best in the world. Hence, Jadeja brings a whole package and that may be required Down Under next year. 11. Jasprit Bumrah Jasprit Bumrah. (Photo by Morgan Hancock/Action Plus via Getty Images) Jasprit Bumrah is one of the best all-format bowlers in the world at the moment. He was predominantly a white-ball bowler until the start of 2018 but he’s evolved into a terrific Test bowler as well. Hence, since then, in order to manage his workload, Bumrah has been on and off in white-ball cricket. However, that doesn’t take away from the fact that he will be leading India’s charge with the ball in Australia next year. Bumrah can bowl anywhere in the innings. Be in the powerplay, in the middle or the death, he will be effective. But it is his skills at the death that are rated as the best in the world. Bumrah is arguably the best death bowler in white-ball cricket alongside Mitchell Starc. The Gujarat pacer’s ability to nail in the yorkers are second to none. Hence, he will be one of the most crucial members of the Indian line-up in the T20 World Cup next year. 12. Bhuvneshwar Kumar Bhuvneshwar Kumar. (Photo Source: Twitter) With India playing a lot more Test cricket and opting to try out a few new pacers post the 2019 World Cup, Bhuvneshwar Kumar hasn’t been around that much. He toured the West Indies right after the World Cup but has been excluded/rested since then. However, he is one of the top white-ball pacers in India and will be one of the key pacers in Australia next year. Bhuvneshwar is one of the best exponents of the new ball. Moreover, he has added an extra yard of pace as well over the last few years. Hence, that will be useful on good batting tracks in Australia. Also, his death bowling has improved leaps and bounds. The Meerut lad is a canny customer and uses his variations really well. He has different kinds of slower balls in addition to the yorker that he executes really well. Hence, along with Bumrah, Bhuvneshwar will most likely lead the pace attack. 13. Navdeep Saini Navdeep Saini. (Photo by RANDY BROOKS/AFP/Getty Images) Navdeep Saini’s stocks have risen quite a bit in the recent past. He made his international debut earlier this year in a T20I against West Indies in Lauderhill, Florida and made an impact straight away. The fast bowler from Delhi has been consistently performing in domestic cricket for Delhi and India ‘A’. Moreover, he has been on the fringes of the Indian team across formats for a while now. It is his ability to rattle the batsmen with the pace that makes him stand out. He can be a touch erratic but he can bowl four overs at a high pace. Hence, he could be India’s backup pacer for next year’s T20 World Cup. Moreover, the bounce in Australia will only help him. Hence, Saini could be a useful addition to the squad. 14. Yuzvendra Chahal Yuzvendra Chahal. (Photo by Tharaka Basnayaka/NurPhoto via Getty Images) Yuzvendra Chahal has been one of the reasons for India’s success in white-ball cricket over the last few years. He has been an integral part of the limited-overs side since 2017. It is Chahal’s effectiveness in the middle overs and his ability to provide constant breakthroughs that has helped India become a potent bowling side. His record in the shorter formats is excellent. In fact, after Kuldeep Yadav’s slump in form, Chahal took over as the lead spinner in the World Cup. However, with India trying out a few other spinners, he has been out of the T20I side. But he made a return to the side that was announced to play Bangladesh at home. Hence, Chahal will most likely lead the spin attack in the mega event next year. Moreover, the big grounds in Australia will help his cause as well. Thus, he will continue to remain a key member of India’s bowling attack. 15. Rahul Chahar Rahul Chahar. (Photo by Sarah Ansell/Getty Images). Rahul Chahar has come up the ranks pretty quickly. He made his debut in all three formats (first-class, List ‘A’ and T20) at the age of 17 during the 2016-17 season. However, constant injuries meant he missed a major part of the 2017-18 season. He did well in Under-19 cricket but missed the bus to New Zealand in early 2018 for the Under-19 World Cup. However, Chahar continued to work hard and put in some consistent performances. In the 2019 season of the IPL, he became Mumbai Indians’ lead spinner and did very well. Hence, he got an India call-up for the T20I series in the USA and West Indies where he made his international debut. However, that is the only game he has played so far. But with Kuldeep Yadav’s dip in form and the rise in stocks of wrist spinners, Rahul Chahar may well find himself on the plane to Australia next year.

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Predicting India's 15-man squad for the T20 World Cup 2020

Going largely by current form and the present squad, here we try to predict India’s 15 for the T20 World Cup to be played in Australia next year.

8. Krunal Pandya

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