Veteran wicketkeeper batter Dinesh Karthik feels that India went a bit overboard by picking five spinners in the squad for the Champions Trophy. India made a couple of last-minute changes to the CT squad, with Yashasvi Jaiswal dropping out late to make way for Varun Chakaravarthy, while the injury forced Jasprit Bumrah to make way for Harshit Rana. With Varun's inclusion, head coach Gautam Gambhir and captain Rohit Sharma have created a problem of plenty for themselves with five spin-bowling options.
Senior all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja is almost certain to be in the XI after his impressive show with the ball against England. Kuldeep Yadav could be the X-factor with the ball for India in the Dubai conditions while Axar Patel has turned out to be a handy batter who has been excelling in the floater's role.
Karthik suggested that having five spinners in the squad suggests that the team management is unsure about the ideal combination.
"Five spinners, I personally feel, is a bit too much. They could have done with 4, I felt. And that’s where I do think it shows a little bit of, not confusion, which is probably a strong word, but not being very sure of what exactly to do because they announced a squad and then they added another spinner for an opener," Karthik told Cricbuzz.
‘Siraj could have been the ideal choice to replace Bumrah’
Meanwhile, the selection committee went ahead with Harshit Rana as Jasprit Bumrah's replacement as Mohammed Siraj was picked as a non-travelling substitute. The decision to pick Rana over Siraj did put the selection committee under the scanners, as the latter has been a consistent performer for India in the 50-over format for the past few years.
{{/usCountry}}Meanwhile, the selection committee went ahead with Harshit Rana as Jasprit Bumrah's replacement as Mohammed Siraj was picked as a non-travelling substitute. The decision to pick Rana over Siraj did put the selection committee under the scanners, as the latter has been a consistent performer for India in the 50-over format for the past few years.
{{/usCountry}}However, Karthik asserted that Siraj could have been the ideal replacement but the Indian camp currently has more trust on Rana's ability and he also reciprocated well with impressive show in England ODIs.
“Look, if you had to go with experience, then yes, Siraj could have been the ideal choice, but I thought Harshit bowled very well against England. What I feel is the Indian camp is very impressed with Harshit Rana. I think Harshit Rana was the debate, but I feel Team India backs him right now more than Siraj," Karthik said.