“There was of course talk on him. He has been a terrific performer for India. Kuldeep (Yadav) has obviously had a fantastic run at this point. To fit two wrist-spinners might be difficult. So, unfortunately, one has to miss out. At this point, Kuldeep is a little bit ahead of him.”
The rationale offered by chief selector Ajit Agarkar on Monday for omitting Yuzvendra Chahal from India’s 17-member Asia Cup squad is unlikely to please the leg-spinner. By extension of his exclusion for the continental tournament beginning on August 30, it is plausible that Chahal may miss the bus for the ODI World Cup at home as well despite a record of 121 wickets in 72 matches.
While Chahal will concur with Agarkar’s assessment of Kuldeep Yadav's form – he himself praised the left-arm wrist-spinner's rhythm during the recent tour of the Caribbean – he may turn around and wonder how two left-arm orthodox spinners of a similar mould fit into the squad.
Ravindra Jadeja and Axar Patel don’t offer much variety as bowlers after all. Axar is a few inches taller alright, but they essentially dart the ball in and rely on the surface to offer assistance. To harp on what they bring to the table with the ball may be to miss the point though, for India’s priorities lie elsewhere.
While Jadeja is almost a certainty to occupy that No. 7 spot, Axar’s case as a second left-arm spinner at the cost of homogeneity in the spin attack is bolstered by his batting utility at No. 8. With teams gravitating towards longer batting line-ups in particularly white-ball cricket, and the subsequent freedom to attack derived from that depth, India are perhaps wary of lagging behind.
{{/usCountry}}While Jadeja is almost a certainty to occupy that No. 7 spot, Axar’s case as a second left-arm spinner at the cost of homogeneity in the spin attack is bolstered by his batting utility at No. 8. With teams gravitating towards longer batting line-ups in particularly white-ball cricket, and the subsequent freedom to attack derived from that depth, India are perhaps wary of lagging behind.
{{/usCountry}}“Sometimes, it is about the balance or the combination of the team. Axar has done really well. He can bat as well,” Agarkar said. More importantly, India skipper Rohit Sharma – the task of manoeuvring these resources ultimately falls on him – seems keen on batting depth. Chahal aside, the absence of a specialist off-spinner in the squad is also glaring, but R Ashwin’s wicket-taking nous and experience weren’t persuasive enough to push him into contention. During the selection meeting here on Monday, the composition of the spin attack and the need for a deeper batting line-up must have consumed most of the discussion.
“We had a deep discussion about an off-spinner and a leg-spinner as well,” Sharma said. “We want somebody who can bat at No. 8 and 9. And Axar has had a good run this year. He has batted well in white-ball cricket. He can create that batting depth. We thought about Ashwin and Washington (Sundar), but Chahal has also had to miss out. The only way we could fit them in was if we took one of the seamers out, but we can’t really do that because seamers are going to play a big role in the next two months considering the amount of games.”
That Axar is a left-hand batter in a team packed with right-handers in the top six also works in his favour. He was promoted to No. 4 in the second ODI against West Indies last month. “With him being there, it allows us that option of having a left-hand batter and someone who can go up the order and play the spinners,” Sharma said.
India, of course, didn’t have their full-strength squad for the recent T20 series loss against West Indies, but coach Rahul Dravid highlighted their lack of batting depth as one of his biggest takeaways. Though all the top players are back for the Asia Cup as the final stretch of World Cup preparation begins, it is an issue that hasn’t entirely gone away. If Kuldeep for instance slots in at No. 8 followed by pacers Mohammed Shami, Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Siraj, India still have a long tail to contend with. It's probably why Shardul Thakur is also in the fray as a seam-bowling all-rounder who could potentially take the spot of one of the specialist pacers.
“Finding depth in our batting has been an area we are trying to address,” Dravid had said in the Caribbean. “You have sides that have that depth. Obviously, we have some challenges on that front and we need to work on that.”
Perhaps the benchmark in this regard has been set by England, who average 23.1 in 82 innings for Nos. 8-11 since the 2019 World Cup. They are world champions in this format, and the likely presence of Chris Woakes, Sam Curran, Adil Rashid, Moeen Ali and David Willey in their World Cup squad suggests they will continue to lay down a marker. Intent on letting loose with the bat from the outset, this depth is fundamental to their assertiveness as a batting unit.
Whether it will work for India is a matter of debate that will settle based on their World Cup showing. Because by excluding Chahal, India are taking the risk of sacrificing a bowler whose strike rate of 30.9 points to an inherent wicket-taking knack.