Indian legend Sunil Gavaskar echoed the sentiments of many on social media when he found out that Kuldeep Yadav had been left out of the India playing XI in their first 2024 T20 World Cup match against Ireland. Gavaskar said that he was surprised by the decision. Thus far, the chinaman had been speculated as a nailed-on starter for Team India in the 2024 T20 World Cup. However, Rohit Sharma and Rahul Dravid had chosen to go with Ravindra Jadeja and Axar Patel as the two regular spinners.
"I'm surprised. Kuldeep bowled really well in the IPL. His exclusion came as a little surprise. Apart from that this looks like a solid team," said Gavaskar, appearing on the pre-match coverage on Star Sports. Kuldeep picked up 16 wickets from 11 games for Delhi Capitals in the recently-concluded IPL 2024.
All three frontline seamers - Jasprit Bumrah, Arshdeep Singh and Mohammad Siraj - were chosen for the game. Rohit implied that the decision had been made after learnings from the warm-up game, which was played on the same ground, at New York's Nassau County International Cricket Stadium.
"We played on a similar pitch and do know what to expect a little bit. I know it's going to be slightly different from what we're used to," said Rohit at the toss.
Kuldeep had failed to pick up a wicket in the warm-up game against Bangladesh, bowling just two overs.
Kuldeep's Delhi Capitals captain Rishabh Pant found himself in the playing XI, edging out Sanju Samson as the team's wicket-keeper batsman. Pant's selection was evident as he had slammed a half-century against Bangladesh, batting at no. 3.
Yashasvi Jaiswal also did not make the XI, with Virat Kohli coming back in to open alongside Rohit Sharma. Kuldeep Yadav's long-time spin partner Yuzvendra Chahal also missed the cut.
India played their first 2024 T20 World Cup game against Ireland on June 5, as they hunt for a second World T20 title.