Former Pakistan fast bowler Shoaib Akhtar on Thursday slammed the Indian team management and BCCI selectors over their selection of the 15-member squad for the upcoming ICC World Cup 2023.
Akhtar was baffled by the non-selection of leg-spinner Yuzvendra Chahal and left-arm seamer Arshdeep Singh in the squad picked for the showpiece event which India will host in October-November.
“How they have not selected Chahal is beyond me. And again, I think Arshdeep needed to be in the squad because under pressure, when you are playing against someone like Pakistan, then you need that left-handed seamer.
"But the problem with the Indian team is that when they get out for 150 or 200, it’s not the batsmen but the bowlers who will have to perform. How long will you stretch your batting line-up?
"If the first five batsmen couldn’t do anything, then what will the No. 7 or No. 8 do? So, I literally believe that you’re playing with one bowler less," Akhtar said during a virtual press conference organised by Star Sports.
Unsettled India squad
The Rawalpindi Express also feels that the current Indian team which is playing in the Asia Cup 2023 is not really a settled squad due to the number of players returning from injury who haven't had much game time in international cricket but will be expected to perform at their best in the World Cup.
"I don’t know why I have this feeling that India could not pick its final eleven for the past two years? I don’t feel the team is settled because now you all have injuries, three or four people have been replaced and your squad seems unsettled.
"It’s a strange thing for me that the squad doesn’t seem settled. We still don’t know who are the four main batsmen and who will bat at No.5, will Virat bat at No. 3 or 4?
"India has not been a settled squad for the past two years. It’s just a very strange thing for me because you don’t know who has to settle where," Akhtar added.
