World Cup 2019: Team-wise one blunder made by the selectors

The job of a selector in a game like cricket is not an easy one. In a team sport where tactical decisions like balance and flexibility in the squad, right mixture of youth and experience play a major role in the side’s performance, selecting the right squad is a very important job. Rather, being a selector is a thankless job at the moment. The ODI World Cup is undoubtedly the biggest cricketing event and winning the trophy is every cricketer’s dream. With high expectations, there is a lot of pressure on the selectors while selecting a World Cup team. They have to analyse different aspects like current form, last-minute injuries, flexibility and after lengthy discussions, a team is selected. In doing so, the selectors, sometimes have to take harsh decisions and they have to face the wrath for the same. Here we bring you team-wise blunder made by the selectors for 2019 WC: 1. India – Rishabh Pant’s exclusion Rishabh Pant. (Photo by Robert Cianflone/Getty Images) Rishabh Pant is best known for aggressive batting with his wide range of shots and his ability to hit big sixes with ease. The young bloke from Delhi can play various shots like the scoops, the flicks, the paddles and brings a lot of aggression in the team. Though he has just featured in 5 ODIs, his brilliant performance in Test cricket on the Australia tour further illustrates the talent this young man possess. Also, his ODI strike rate of around 131 and IPL strike rate of around 163 shows the impact he can make in a game. He could have been the “X-factor” for the Indian team in the World Cup. He was also the second highest run-scorer in the 2018 IPL season of IPL with 684 runs in 14 innings to his name. Pant has also played some match-winning innings this year and has scored 336 runs in 11 innings. With two Test centuries in difficult conditions to his name, Rishabh Pant has shown that he is not just a T20 player and has the patience and determination to play a big knock. The Indian selectors definitely missed a trick by not including him in the World Cup squad and the Indians fans will hope that the mistake doesn’t cost them their third World Cup title. 2. England – Jofra Archer’s exclusion Jofra Archer. (Photo Source: Twitter) Jofra Archer is an aggressive all-rounder who can hit the big shots and is known to bowl fiery spells at a rapid pace. Born in Barbados, he decided to change his base and shifted to England. When the ECB decided to relax the rules on expats it was expected that the all-rounder will finally be a part of the World Cup squad. The young lad who is yet to make his international debut has already shown signs of brilliance in the IPL, BBL and the Country cricket. The English team had transformed themselves in limited-overs cricket after the debacle in the 2015 World Cup. They are one of the favourites to win the upcoming event with their mighty batting lineup. But one thing the team lacks is an out and out fast bowler who can get wickets with both the new and old ball. And Jofra Archer was the perfect man to fill the gaps in the team. He should’ve been the preferred choice and should’ve made it to the provisional squad. But England selectors have picked him for Pakistan series and his performance in those matches will determine his place eventually. In case, Archer fails to make it to the World Cup squad, England might also lose a chance to win their maiden title. 3. Afghanistan- Change in leadership Afghanistan captain Asghar Afghan. (Photo by Tharaka Basnayaka/NurPhoto via Getty Images) The selectors’ decision to drop highly successful Asghar Afghan from leadership duties just before the mega event has surprised a lot of people. One of the key factors in the rise of Afghanistan cricket has been his smart leadership skills. The Afghanistan team won 31 ODIs and 37 off their 46 T20Is under Afghan. The team has been improving leaps and bounds in the last few years and it’s quite hard to understand the logic behind the decision. In fact, Afghanistan cricket’s two biggest voices, Mohammad Nabi and Rashid Khan openly criticized the decision and warned the selectors about its impact on the morale of the team. The Afghanistan cricket has risen through the ranks rapidly in the last decade and were expected to give some serious competition to big teams in the coming World Cup. The fans and people of Afghanistan can only hope that the blunder made by the selectors don’t affect the team’s performance and they do well under Gulbadin Naib. 4. Pakistan- Mohammad Amir’s exclusion Mohammad Amir. (Photo by Hagen Hopkins/Getty Images) Mohammad Amir’s journey is quite extraordinary and different from most cricketers. From being seen as a future star of Pakistan cricket to being involved in the match-fixing scandal and then to make a comeback in international cricket, Amir’s life has been a rollercoaster ride. His fiery new-ball spell in the Champions Trophy final in 2017 against India is still rated as one of the best ever. But after that, the left-arm seamer went through a lean period in the limited-overs format and got just 5 wickets in 101 overs at a poor average of around 91. His recent performances have not been up to the mark which led to him being dropped from the team as well. But Mohammad Amir is known to be a big match player. He could have been the go-to man for the skipper Sarfaraz Ahmed during the World Cup. The fast bowler has been selected for the England series before the World Cup and even Sarfaraz said a good performance in the series may open the door for the left-arm pacer. At the moment though the stocks are heavily against Amir. 5. South Africa – Not picking Reeza Hendricks Reeza Hendricks. (Photo by Lee Warren/Gallo Images/Getty Images) There was a toss-up between Hashim Amla and Reeza Hendricks ahead of South Africa’s World Cup squad selection and the selectors preferred experience to leave out the latter. Without any doubt, Amla has been one of the modern day greats and has done exceptionally well since his debut in 2008. But his recent form hasn’t been great and the batsman looked completely out of form in recent times. Amongst the 48 batsmen who have scored at least 500 ODI runs since 2018, Amla languishes at number 37. He has scored just 529 runs in 16 innings at an average of 35.26 in this period with just one hundred and 3 fifties. He has as many as 7 scores of below-20 in this time-frame. The young Reeza Hendricks has performed quite well in domestic cricket and was also the third highest run scorer in the Mzansi Super League. He scored 412 runs in 9 innings at an impressive average of 58.86. Also with pitches in England being flat, Hendricks’ positive game could have been the key for the African team. 6. Australia – Not picking Peter Handscomb Peter Handscomb. (Photo by Matt King/Getty Images) Peter Handscomb is a talented wicket-keeper batsman and has shown glimpses of his brilliance against the series against India. He was one of the key players in the series and was instrumental in changing the fortunes of the Australian team where they won the series 3-2 after losing the first two games of the series. He was the third highest run scorer of the series with 236 runs in 5 matches at an average of around 47. But with David Warner and Steven Smith coming back into the side, Handscomb lost his place in the team. The selectors definitely erred in omitting him as he could also have served as the backup wicket-keeper in the team. Also his ability to play spin well in the era of wrist-spinner and rotate the strike could have given the right balance to the batting line-up. This move could come back to haunt Australia in the latter stages of the World Cup with the pitches likely to get slow. 7. Sri Lanka – New captain out of nowhere Dimuth Karunaratne. (Photo Source: ICC) Dimuth Karunarathne who last played an ODI during 2015 World Cup, will lead Sri Lanka in the upcoming event. No wonder this decision has surprised a lot of people. The 30-year old has just played 17 ODIs and scored a mere 190 runs at a poor average of less than 16. His name was not even in the consideration until Sri Lanka‘s historic Test series win in South Africa is another glaring fact. Karunaratne was the Test captain then and that has played part in this decision. Lasith Malinga was the ODI captain in the previous series and he could’ve been the best bet for them. Nevertheless, selectors had other plans and the Lankan plans can only hope that the skipper is not changed midway through the tournament now. 8. New Zealand – Picking Tom Blundell ahead of Tim Seifert Tim Seifert. (Photo credit should read MARTY MELVILLE/AFP/Getty Images) Tim Seifert almost sealed the World Cup spot with an impressive 43-ball 84 runs innings against India in the first T20I in Wellington earlier this year. He first came into limelight after scoring the quickest T20 ton in New Zealand’s domestic history. He has been exceptional over the years in domestic cricket and grabbed his chances almost immediately in international cricket. Though the selectors decided to go with uncapped Tom Blundell in the World Cup who is more known for his exploits in Test cricket. Tom Blundell averages 37.74 in first-class cricket compared to just 23.84 in List A cricket. Colin Munro‘s form at the top of the order has been scratchy in recent past and Tim Seifert could have been the perfect backup option. His attacking style of batting suits the game more than Tom Blundell in limited overs format and the selectors have definitely made an error in omitting him from the mega event. 9. Windies- Absence of experienced Maron Samuels in the middle order Marlon Samuels of Windies. (Photo by RANDY BROOKS/AFP/Getty Images) Marlon Samuels played an important role in making sure that the Windies are playing the 2019 World Cup. In the World Cup qualifiers in 2018, he was the fourth highest run-scorer in the tournament with 304 runs in 8 innings to his name. The experienced campaigner has scored more than 5000 ODI runs and has been one of Windies’ most dependable batsman in the middle overs. The selectors have selected a good looking squad for the World Cup but one missing link in the team is a player who can rotate the strike in the middle overs and anchor the innings. In a team packed with big hitters, Samuels could have been the glue that holds the team together. 10. Bangladesh- Exclusion of Imrul Kayes Imrul Kayes. (Photo Source: Twitter) The selectors’ decision to back the out of form Soumya Sarkar, Liton das and Sabbir Rahman meant Imrul Kayes dream of playing in the coming World Cup were left shattered. Though the southpaw has himself been not in great form recently, he has done quite well for Bangladesh cricket in testing times and could have given some solidity to the inexperienced and a not-so-confident top order. He is also equipped to play swing bowling much better than the likes of Liton or Sarkar and could have been useful against the new ball in English conditions. He could’ve also been an ideal foil to a player like Tamim Iqbal while opening the innings. Get the latest Cricket News and updates from the World Cup 2019, Match Predictions, Fantasy Cricket Tips and lots more on CricTracker.com.

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