After winning the T20 World Cup for the second consecutive time, Team India now has an even bigger target in front of it. Coach Gautam Gambhir has now set his sights on the ODI World Cup to be held in 2027. Only after winning the T20 World Cup, Gambhir had announced that preparations for that World Cup would start after the end of the IPL 2026 season. But the truth is that with the IPL itself, a strategy to achieve this biggest title has started. In one report it has even been claimed that the selection committee has prepared a short list of 20 players. But who are these 20 players? Who can get a place?
For 2 months due to the 19th season of IPL starting from March 28. Indian team Will stay away from international cricket. Only after this she will make a comeback and then play as many ODI matches as possible. Now, if anyone hopes that by performing brilliantly in the IPL, a new player will be able to stake his claim for this World Cup, then it is less likely because according to the report, the selectors and the team management have decided on 20 players and in future, the focus will be on their performance only and selection will be done.
The place of these players is confirmed!
Now the question is, who will be those 20 players, out of which the last 15 will then be selected? At present, the names of these 20 players have not been revealed, but if we pay attention to the ODI series of the last few months of Team India and the regular players of this format, then it is not very difficult to guess. Shubman Gill as the new captain and Shreyas Iyer as the vice-captain are part of it. The question is about Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma and both have expressed their desire for it. Besides, his performance has also been strong. In such a situation, he can be expected to be in the squad.
Apart from these, names like team’s regular wicketkeeper KL Rahul, star all-rounder Hardik Pandya, fast bowler Jasprit Bumrah and spinner Kuldeep Yadav are fixed in ODI. Who else will be with them now? It has been told in the report that apart from Bumrah and Pandya, the names of Harshit Rana, Arshdeep Singh, Prasidh Krishna and Mohammad Siraj have been finalized as fast bowlers. This means that there is no place for the legendary pacer Mohammed Shami, who took the most wickets in the last ODI World Cup.
The biggest question is on wicketkeeping
Apart from Kuldeep, Washington Sundar, Akshar Patel and Varun Chakraborty are sure to be there in the spin department. The question is about Ravindra Jadeja whether he will be a part of it. However, considering his experience, it is certain that he will be in the list of 20 players. Whereas Yashasvi Jaiswal and Abhishek Sharma may get a chance as backup openers. But the race for backup wicketkeeper is the toughest and in this, Rishabh Pant may face competition from Ishan Kishan and Sanju Samson. There is a possibility that Pant and Ishaan will make a place in the list of 20 players.
Are these 20 players somewhere?
Shubman Gill (captain), Shreyas Iyer (vice-captain), Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, KL Rahul, Hardik Pandya, Axar Patel, Washington Sundar, Kuldeep Yadav, Harshit Rana, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj, Arshdeep Singh, Prasidh Krishna, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Rishabh Pant, Ishan Kishan, Abhishek Sharma, Ravindra Jadeja, Sanju Samson.