Advertisement
The BCCI secretary is the convenor of the senior selection committee (men) and with Shah busy with his political commitments, it is understood that the meeting will be held in Ahmedabad.
The second wicketkeeper’s slot and all-rounder Hardik Pandya’s place in the side will be the two talking points of the selection meeting.
It is understood that KL Rahul (IPL strike rate of 144 and 378 runs so far) and Sanju Samson (385 runs at a strike rate of 161) are still locked in a battle for the second wicketkeeper’s slot.
Related Articles
Advertisement
Another school of thought is that someone like Samson, who has 25 T20Is under his belt but an average of just 20 and a strike rate of around 135, should not be considered based on just one good IPL season.
In case of Rahul, it can be said that one senior member of the coaching staff will certainly go all out to push for his inclusion, but many believe that the stylish right-handed batter’s approach in T20 cricket remains archaic.
However, he is still considered a better bet than Samson at No. 5 or 6 on slowish Caribbean tracks.
The other option, Jitesh Sharma, is in very poor form, while Dhruv Jurel hasn’t got a chance to keep wickets. During the last game in Lucknow, he did get an opportunity to bat long and scored a fifty.
Left-handed batter Tilak Varma, who is also a handy off-spinner, remains an option along with pacer Sandeep Sharma, the Punjab veteran whose slower variations at the death have played a big role in Rajasthan Royals’ surge to the top of the IPL table.