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The ICC Cricket World Cup 2019 is fast approaching and all the 10 teams have announced their preliminary squads for the World Cup before the deadline which was on April 23rd. They have until May 23rd to make necessary changes necessitated by injuries or poor performances after which the practice matches will start.
The tournament is set to start on May 30th with a match between hosts England and South Africa. This tournament will be held in the round-robin format with each team playing the other 9 teams once and the top 4 teams will qualify for the semi-finals.
The decision-making process in selecting the squad would have been very difficult and while each call was taken in the best interest of the team, not all of them need to be right.
There have been some questionable selection errors in the squads and let's take a look at one from each team.
#10 Afghanistan - Omitting Shapoor Zadran
One of the most significant omissions in the Afghanistan squad was that of lanky left-arm pacer Shapoor Zadran, one of the most experienced ODI players in the team.
With pace bowling all-rounder Gulbadin Naib appointed as skipper, Afghanistan announced their squad for the World Cup just before the deadline on April 23 for their World Cup campaign.
Zadran was once the leader of the bowling attack for the Afghanistan team and the left-arm pacer was the highest wicket-taker for the team during the ICC Cricket World Cup 2015 held in Australia. This clearly showcases his ability to deliver during big matches and his omission to include younger names may backfire on the team.
#9 West Indies - Selecting Fabian Allen
Fabian Allen was part of the 15-member squad which the West Indies Cricket Board announced for the World Cup. The all-rounder who bowls off-spin is a fresher in the national team and hasn't got enough international experience to thrive on the big stage.
He has played only 4 ODIs before this and has made only 25 runs and has been pretty ineffective with the ball. Though he's a brilliant fielder, there is nothing to him apart from that and a player like Marlon Samuels with all that he's done for the team must have been selected.
While the Windies have a very young and potent side, they have been bit unfair to the experienced players who might have added more value to the side and Allen's selection justifies that.
#8 Sri Lanka- Omitting Dinesh Chandimal
Dropping the best player in the Sri Lankan team post the departure of Mahela Jayawardene and Kumar Sangakarra can only be described as madness and that is what Sri Lanka have done with their 15-man squad for the World Cup.
First, they appointed Dimuth Karunaratne, a talented Test player but highly inexperienced ODI player as their captain when he has failed to score more than 200 runs in 17 ODIs that he has played. Dinesh Chandimal, meanwhile is a very experienced batsman who has played close to 150 ODIs and is one of the best players the country has produced.
This omission is too hard to digest and few other players they have selected don't even come close to the class of this man. Sri Lanka have made many questionable calls and despite his poor current form, he shouldn't have been dropped and Sri Lanka go in to this tournament as a really weak side.
#7 Bangladesh - Selecting Abu Jayed
Bangladesh sprung a surprise in their World Cup squad when they selected young pacer Abu Jayed, a player who hasn't made his ODI debut. The 25 year-old's selection was covered by the news of Imrul Kayes being dropped but Jayed's selection doesn't seem as great as it sounds.
With experienced and energetic options like Taskin Ahmed available, it was a surprise to see Bangladesh go for Jayed who doesn't have such an impressive domestic record. He has played 5 Test matches and 3 T20Is and has bowled averagely and has been very expensive.
While he might not be part of the side's strongest playing XI due to the presence of 3 quality pacers, he might be forced in if an injury occurs and frankly, he's not yet ready to play ODI cricket at the game's biggest level.
#6 Pakistan - Omitting Mohammad Amir
Taking after Sri Lanka, Pakistan have chose to be ungrateful to star performers who haven't been in form and omitted left-arm pacer Mohammad Amir from their squad. One of the best talents to ever play for the team, Amir's accuracy and swing combined with deadly pace made him one of the team's most important assets.
He won the team the ICC Champions Trophy in 2017 and though he has fared pretty poor since then, his experience and energy is desperately needed by the side. While there are many quality pacers like Shaheen Afridi, Junaid Khan and Hasan Ali, the team lacks a leader in their pace bowling department and Amir would've been just that.
The conditions in England support his style of bowling and despite his poor form, a tournament like this could have been his resurrection and Pakistan have missed out on that.
#5 South Africa - Omitting Reeza Hendricks
South Africa's strength lies in their strong pace attack which looks the best among all the other teams and their squad is a pretty strong one for the World Cup. Their batting, however has been more or less reliant on Quinton de Kock and Faf du Plessis, and players like Aiden Markram and David Miller will want to shoulder some responsibility in the side.
One error in the squad however was the notable omission of Mzanzi Super League graduate Reeza Hendricks, a belligerent opening batsman. Hendricks and Rassie van der Dussen were continuously backed by the team before the World Cup and both of them did a pretty good job for the side. However, only van der Dussen has made the cut while Hendricks has got the short straw.
Hashim Amla hasn't been at the top of his game and his slow, sluggish innings and poor form ahead of the World Cup might continue into the tournament and they don't have a backup to that. Hendricks might have been a very good alternate option who the team can have as a backup option and shouldn't have been left out.
#4 New Zealand - Selecting Tom Blundell
The Kiwis have put together a brilliant squad for the World Cup and look well set in all departments and the only area where they seem to lack is the presence of a proper keeper-batsman. While Tom Latham has been selected as the primary keeper batsman, the backup option, Tom Blundell's selection doesn't tick all the boxes for the side.
With options like Tim Seifert available on the blocks, Blundell was preferred due to his better "keeping" skills but this isn't likely to work out as expected. If in case Latham is unable to play, Blundell will have to occupy a spot in the middle order and his inexperience might let the side down with his batting on a huge stage like the World Cup.
Blundell hasn't yet made his ODI debut and though he made some runs in the Test series against West Indies at home, he isn't ready to go straight up to a tournament like the World Cup. Though this isn't that much of an error, better options than Blundell were clearly available.
#3 Australia - Omitting Peter Handscomb
Australia were among the first to announce their squads for the World Cup and though it's a star-studded lineup, the omission of Peter Handscomb from the squad is something which wasn't taken lightly by fans and cricket pundits alike. Australia's strong top order, all-rounders and fiery pace attack make them one of the strongest teams on paper.
Handscomb has been one of the best Australian players during the suspension of Steve Smith and David Warner and has been adept in handling spin and pace alike and is a good wicket-keeping option. Australia have however gone with only one keeper, Alex Carey who hasn't made too many runs at all.
Handscomb showed his class in the series against India and it's really unfair to drop him after his efforts. He would have provided stability and a better backup option for Carey and should have been in the squad.
#2 India- Omitting Ambati Rayudu
India's World Cup squad was the one which garnered a lot of attention from critics and fans and there were a couple of debatable omissions and inclusions in the squad. The most notable was the omission of Rishabh Pant and Ambati Rayudu and while Pant's exclusion has a decent justification, the "3-D" justification given for choosing Vijay Shankar over Rayudu doesn't really stick.
Shankar is pretty new to the Indian team and suddenly asking him to be the No. 4 batsman may add a lot of pressure on him. Rayudu has been the favorite for that spot and being dropped in the last minute due to poor form in the last few matches isn't right.
Rayudu has the experience of playing in big tournaments and would certainly have learnt a lot from his recent failures. His ODI stats are tremendous and with this being his last opportunity to play in a World Cup, the BCCI have been pretty unfair to him.
#1 England - Selecting Mark Wood
England look the strongest among all the sides in the World Cup and the hosts have a very strong squad for the event. However, the exclusion of Jofra Archer from the squad has created some uproar but the ECB later clarified that the squad was subject to change after the series against Pakistan.
One player who doesn't deserve to be in the squad is pacer Mark Wood and he really hasn't done anything to deserve a selection in the side. Wood has been pretty erratic with his line and length and has leaked runs in almost every game he has played. He has been in poor form post the Champions Trophy and with more deserving players like Chris Jordan available, Wood's selection isn't needed.
England aldready have players like Chris Woakes and Liam Plunkett who can hit high speeds and with the potential of Archer looming over the squad, they must make the right call and drop Wood from the squad after the Pakistan series in case he doesn't perform.
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