‘One of the fairest teams, Rinku shouldn’t be disheartened’ - Sourav Ganguly opines on India’s T20 World Cup squad

Former India captain and BCCI president Sourav Ganguly was elated with India’s squad for the upcoming T20 World Cup. He called it one of the fairest teams that the selectors could have picked and also expressed sympathy for Rinku Singh. Despite being one of the favourites to make it to the squad ahead of the IPL, the Aligarh-born batter failed to do so as he has been named as one of the travelling reserves.

Ganguly believes that Rinku has a lot of cricket left in him and expects him to play a lot for the national team. However, he understands the reason behind dropping the 26-year-old as he explained that the Ajit Agarkar-led selection committee emphasised picking an extra spinner, which can come in handy in the spin-friendly conditions of West Indies.

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“I think this is one of the fairest teams I have seen. I am not saying other teams are not fair. I think the selectors and Rohit have done a fantastic job in picking this side. I think Rinku missed out because they wanted to go with another spinner. But Rinku is in standby, so fingers crossed. It is just the beginning of Rinku's career. He will play a lot for India. I think he should not be disheartened with this. But I think this is a very strong team, solid team,” Ganguly said while speaking to reporters in Kolkata.

Notably, there were a lot of discussions on Yuzvendra Chahal, Sanju Samson and Rishabh Pant. Chahal, who wasn’t in the T20 scheme of things and is not a part of BCCI’s central contract, performed brilliantly so far in the IPL 2024, which helped him get into the 15-member squad. Samson and Pant too have been incredible to make it to the squad.

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Meanwhile, skipper Rohit stated that he hasn’t confirmed the playing XI just yet, as he is unaware of the conditions in the USA. However, he kept the door open for playing an extra spinner if required.