ICC World Cup 2019: 3 reasons why Indian can win the tournament with the current squad

The BCCI have announced the Indian squad for the World Cup 2019, and they have thrown up quite a few surprises.

A lot of fans expected that selectors would go with the youthful exuberance of Rishabh Pant instead of the experience of Dinesh Karthik, but the BCCI had other ideas. They chose to reward Karthik for his consistency over the last couple of years, meaning Pant will have to wait a while to make his World Cup debut.

Ambati Rayudu has also missed the cut as the selectors believe he has not done enough with the chances afforded to him after the 2017 Champions Trophy.

KL Rahul has been picked as back-up opening batsman whereas Ravindra Jadeja has been picked as a back-up spinner. Picking Vijay Shankar was a brave move from the selectors as he is very inexperienced in international cricket.

The Indian squad looks good on paper and should be considered among the favourites to win the tournament. Let us look at a few reasons to back that claim.

#1 Dominant top order

Rohit Sharma and Shikhar Dhawan

India's top order has dominated ODI cricket over the last three years. Rohit Sharma, Shikhar Dhawan and Virat Kohli have the ability to win matches single-handedly.

This consistency of the top order lifts the pressure from the rest of the batting lineup. Not only can these three give a flying start to the team, they also have the ability to score big hundreds. This allows the power hitters to come in and play their shots freely to take the innings forward.

If the top order can perform as they have done in the last few years, it will be difficult to stop India. Moreover, if any of these three gets injured during the tournament, India has more than capable back-up in the form of KL Rahul.

#2 The brilliance of the wrist spinners

Chahal and Kuldeep

In the last few years we have seen that wrist spinners have been very effective in ODIs. The pitches in England won't help spinners too much, but wrist spinners have the ability to get turn from any kind of pitch. Even the best of batsmen struggle to read wrist spin.

A good wrist-spinner can be a trump card for any captain. This is because a wrist spinner can disrupt the momentum of the batting team by picking regular wickets in the middle overs.

India is well stocked up in this department as the team has two world-class spinners. Both Yuzvendra Chahal and Kuldeep Yadav have the ability to run through any batting line-up.

This puts pressure on the batsmen and makes the job easier for the other bowlers in the death overs. If the two spinners can work well in tandem, India should be in a good position to win the tournament.

#3 A fearsome fast bowling attack

The fast bowling trio

India have always been blessed with great skill and talent in batting. The bowling department on the other hand, especially the fast bowling department, has traditionally been India's Achilles' heel.

Things have changed now, as the Indian team has an enviable crop of fast bowlers. All the three pacers in the squad are match winners

Jasprit Bumrah is arguably the greatest bowler in the limited overs format in this generation. He can pick wickets with the new ball and can choke the batsmen in the death overs.

Mohammed Shami has been in fantastic form over the last 12-18 months. And Bhuvneshwar Kumar is a great back-up option as he can be lethal in English conditions.

In England, the outcome of the tournament might be decided by the fast bowling reserves of the teams. For a change, the Indian team won't be behind anyone in this department.