ICC World Cup 2023: Rohit Sharma to retain captaincy, BCCI to shortlist 20 players
ICC World Cup 2023: The BCCI is already looking ahead to the mega event in India this year by shortlisting 20 players. Meanwhile, Rohit Sharma is set to retain his captaincy.
FollowAccording to sources in the board, there is no imminent threat to Rohit Sharma's One-Day International (ODI) and Test captaincy as the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) brass hasn't found anything unsatisfactory about his leadership in the traditional formats. Skipper Rohit, along with head coach Rahul Dravid, attended the review meeting in Mumbai. BCCI secretary Jay Shah conducted the meeting. The last selection committee's chairman Chetan Sharma, NCA head VVS Laxman, and president Roger Binny, also attended the review meeting. Since the focus is the World Test Championships (WTC), where India have a good chance of making it to the finals, and the 2023 ODI World Cup, new Twenty20 International (T20I) captain Hardik Pandya was absent from the meeting.
Pandya is in Mumbai for the T20I series against Sri Lanka, which starts on Tuesday. "Rohit is leading India in Tests and ODIs, and there were no discussions about his future as a leader in these two formats. Look at his captaincy record in Tests and ODIs, and it is more than impressive," a BCCI source privy to the development told PTI on the condition of anonymity.
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It was also decided that a pool of 20 players would be rotated till the 2023 World Cup. "The BCCI has shortlisted 20 players who will be rotated till the 50 overs ICC World Cup," Shah said after the meeting. In what could be a significant move by the board, Chetan, who attended the review meeting on Sunday, could once again retain his chairmanship of the senior national selection panel.
If not chairman, he is likely to be the representative from North Zone. The name of former India pacer Venkatesh Prasad is also doing the rounds from South Zone, but his induction in the panel is still being determined. Sharma is a significant development in the roadmap planning up to the CWC 2023.
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"First things first, if Chetan hadn't been told, he wouldn't have applied in the first place. That itself is an indication. India has a World Cup to play in 10 months. Chetan and Harvinder's presence will add continuity along with three new members," the source added. It is understood that SS Das, a former opener, is a big favourite from East Zone because of his 21 Test experience unless some other compulsions lead to the BCCI choosing a lightweight candidate from the east. From the West, Gujarat veteran Mukund Parmar, Salil Ankola, and Sameer Dighe are engaged in a three-way race. The new committee will be named in the coming week.
(With inputs from PTI)
