Shardul Thakur replaces Axar Patel in India’s T20 World Cup squad

Thakur
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Shardul has replaced Axar Patel in India’s T20 World Cup squad, the BCCI  confirmed on Wednesday, and also named eight players who will be staying back to assist the team in its preparation.

The board of control for cricket (BCCI) announced on Wednesday that the all-rounder Shardul Thakur has been replaced Axar Patel in the upcoming men’s T20 World Cup which will begin on October 17 to November 14 in UAE and Oman. 

Axar Patel will now be moved into the stand-by player’s list. He can still have a chance to play for the team if Jadeja would be injured or unavailable in the tournament.

He is the only change in the squad and BCCI gave no reason for his addition. Thakur has had a good season in the second leg of the IPL 2021. 

He took 18 wickets in the IPL 2021 season and also stands himself on the top of the table.

Thakur’s addition is likely due to Hardik Pandya has not bowled since his back injury in 2019. Hardik didn’t bowl a single over in the IPL due to his fitness issues. 

The BCCI felt that they were one pacer short and also Hardik didn’t bowl and India needed one pacer. So, due to this trouble situation, Thakur is selected in the squad.

In the press statement, the BCCI also named eight players who will serve the team in its preparation.

The eight players are Avesh Khan, Umran Malik, Harshal Patel, Lukman Meriwala, Venkatesh Iyer, Karn Sharma, Shahbaz Ahmad, and K Gowtham.

Read here: Why Chris Gayle launches missile of furious words against Curtly Ambrose 

Earlier, India had announced his 15 member squad for the mega event and Axar was part of the main squad while Shardul took part in the reserved seat.

Indian skipper Virat Kohli had announced that he would be stepping down from the captaincy of the Indian team in the T20 game after the mega event. 

The Indian skipper also said that this is his last IPL season as a captain for the IPL franchise Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB).

Pakistan and India have met each other in the 2019 World Cup and now will play against each other in the upcoming T20 World Cup.

Both will play their first match of the mega event against each other at the Dubai International Stadium on October 24. 

Pakistan and India matches have been one of the most highlighted games in the ICC event. 

Former Indian captain, MS Dhoni who is leading Chennai Super Kings in the IPL, will now be mentoring the national side in the mega event.

India Squad: Virat Kohli ©, Rohit Sharma (Vice-Captain), KL Rahul, Suryakumar Yadav, Rishabh Pant (WK), Ishan Kishan, Hardik Pandya, Ravindra Jadeja, Rahul Chahar, Ravichandran Ashwin, Shardul Thakur, Varun Chakravarthy, Jasprit Bumrah, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Mohammad Shami.

Stand-by players: Shreyas Iyer, Deepak Chahar, Axar Patel.

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