Few days ago, the Board of Control for Cricket in India announced India’s team for the World Test Championship Final. The Indian Board did not announce any standby players at the time, but a few reports claim that the names of standby players have been revealed for the WTC Final scheduled for June. Sarfaraz Khan, Ruturaj Gaikwad from Maharashtra, and Ishan Kishan, a Jharkhand batsman, are all names that have been identified as possible standby players.
The WTC Final will take place at The Oval, London from 7-11th June. India and Australia are set to battle in the final clash of this two-year cycle. Both teams have announced their squads. Australia has named a 17 member squad, with Pat Cummins as their captain. India has chosen 15 players and Rohit Sharma to lead them.
The 15-member squad had a few noteworthy things. Ajinkya Rahane was recalled to the Test squad after nearly a year-and-a-half, but Rishabh Pan, Shreyas Bumrah, and Jasprit Bhumrah were unable to play due injuries. The BCCI also did not announce a vice-captain. KL Rahul was retained in the team despite his string of failures.
The squad is still named, and, if reports are to believed, standby players were also identified. Mukesh Saini and Navdeep Sainsi will also be traveling to England as part of the Indian team, in addition to Khan, Gaikwad and Kishan. These two pacers both had a successful domestic season. Saini played well with India A against Bangladesh while Kumar was the top pacer in Bengal.
Did MS Dhoni suggest Ajinkya Rahane’s name for WTC Final?
A report by the Times of India claims that MS Dhoni, the captain of the Chennai Super Kings (CSK), suggested Ajinkya Rahane for the WTC Final. Dhoni may have suggested Rahane because he is currently playing for CSK and doing a lot of work for the four-time champs in IPL 2023.
The report claimed that the Indian team management, as well as the selection committee, had taken input from the former India and Chennai Super Kings captain MS Dhoni before Ajinkya Rahane was recalled.
