India, on Monday, named a tried and tested squad for the World Cup led by Virat Kohli with selectors going for experience in all the slots with no certain candidate.
Dinesh Karthik, 33, was given the second wicketkeeper's slot over rising 21-year-old star Rishabh Pant. Karthik's form has been indifferent in recent games, but selectors valued his performance under pressure over the years.
"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. We have seen Karthik finishing matches under pressure," chief selector M.S.K. Prasad told a news conference.
"Pant is full of talent, he has time on his hands. Unfortunately, he missed out."
Former India skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni, 37, is first-choice wicketkeeper. Allrounder Vijay Shankar, who made his one-day debut this year, was also named for the tournament which starts in England and Wales on May 30. He will probably be the number four batsman, which had been another gap in the 15-member squad.
Ambati Rayudu, who was India's tested number four, missed out on the back below par performances over the tenure. Speaking about his exclusion, Prasad added,
"After the Champions Trophy (2017), we tried quite a few people in that position. We did give a few more chances to Rayudu. Vijay Shankar is three dimensional. We are looking at him at no. 4 to begin with. We also have Dinesh Karthik and Kedar Jadhav. It's not that anything that went against [Rayudu], it's that a few things went for [Shankar]."
Prasad also added that K.L Rahul has been included as a reserve opener in the squad. "To begin with KL [Rahul] will be reserve opener, if need arises the team management will take a call.”
India will begin their World Cup squad on June 5 against South Africa at Southampton. Prior to that though, two warm-up games against New Zealand at The Oval and Bangladesh at Cardiff have been scheduled.
India squad:
Virat Kohli (capt), Rohit Sharma, Shikhar Dhawan, K.L. Rahul, Vijay Shankar, Mahendra Singh Dhoni (wk), Kedar Jadhav, Dinesh Karthik, Yuzvendra Chahal, Kuldeep Yadav, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Jasprit Bumrah, Hardik Pandya, Ravindra Jadeja, Mohammad Shami.
