Players making and missing the World Cup squad in accordance with Shastri's statement

Ravi Shastri, the coach of Indian cricket team, made a statement on Thursday to the effect that there won’t be any more chopping and changing in the Indian team in the next 13 ODIs leading up to the World Cup. He also added that in the remaining 13 matches before the World Cup, India would stick to a smaller group of best players who are likely to be part of the World Cup squad.

Shastri is right in his assessment that any more chopping and changing will create a sense of insecurity among players who are likely to represent India in the World Cup. On the other hand, giving such players a long run would boost their confidence going into the World Cup.

The implications of Shastri’s statement is that some of the players who were earlier in with an outside chance of making it at the last moment should now be resigned to the fact that there will be no more opportunity for them to impress upon the selectors before the World Cup.

On the basis of Ravi Shastri’s statement, the following inferences could be made:

Players who are likely to be excluded (List One)

Ashwin and Rahane - Game over

1. Ravichandran Ashwin

2. Suresh Raina

3. Ajinkya Rahane

4. Dinesh Karthik

5. Deepak Chahar

6. Mohammed Shami

7. Krunal Pandya

8. Prithvi Shaw

9. Shreyas Iyer

10. Siddarth Kaul

Players under an injury cloud (List Two)

The second list of players are those players who are under an injury cloud. They are:

1. Hardik Pandya

2. Shardul Thakur

The remaining set of 16 players coming under the third and fourth lists are those players whom Ravi Shastri has been referring to as the small group of players who are likely to be continued till the World Cup.

.Players who are doubtful starters and reasons for the same (List Three)

Rahul and Manish Pandey have undefined roles in the team

The third list of players are those players who have not booked their place yet though they are in the squad for quite some time now. They are

1. KL Rahul

With Ambati Rayadu having established his place in the team as the new No. 4 player, Rahul is not best suited to bat below No 4. However, Rahul might retain his place in the squad as the reserve opener. His role in the team is nevertheless undefined.

2. Manish Pandey

Like KL Rahul, Manish Pandey hasn’t got enough opportunity to prove himself. But based on the statement made by Ravi Shastri, he should make it to the squad as the extra middle-order batsman without playing too many matches.

3. Umesh Yadav

Umesh Yadav always finds himself in the squad despite being expensive. Some might argue that Mohammed Shami, as expensive as Umesh, would be a better wicket-taking option. It is a big question whether Umesh would still make the final cut.

4. Yuzvendra Chahal

The return of Ravindra Jadeja has put additional pressure on Chahal to retain his place in the team. His wicket-taking ability has also diminished of late. Add to that the fact that he is an ordinary fielder, Chahal suddenly becomes a doubtful starter.

Besides, carrying more than two spinners in the squad to play on English conditions might be a bit of a luxury. More so, with the World Cup scheduled for the early part of English summer next year, when the wickets will be fresh and lively aiding seam bowlers rather than spinners.

Players who are near certainties (List Four)

The fourth set of players are near certainties barring last minute injuries. They are:

1. Virat Kohli

2. Rohit Sharma

3. Shikhar Dhawan

4. Ambati Rayadu

5. Kedar Jadhav

6. MS Dhoni

7. Ravindra Jadeja

8. Bhuvneshwar Kumar

9. Kuldeep Yadav

10. Jasprit Bumrah

11. Khaleel Ahmed

12. Rishabh Pant

If we apply the same logic of the Indian coach’s statement to the past, the following players have stormed into the team on the basis of their performances in the last 13 matches or so:

1. Ambati Rayadu

2. Ravindra Jadeja

3. Khaleel Ahmed

4. Rishabh Pant

As the World Cup is fast approaching, unlike the four players mentioned above, the 10 players who are on list one have run out of time and will get no more chance to prove themselves so late in the day.

To sum up, barring last-minute injuries, out of the 18 players from List two (2 players), List 3 (4 players) and List 4 (12 players), 15 will make it to the final Indian World Cup squad. The race is very much on.