Asia Cup 2023: 'Big Omission'- Matthew Hayden Reacts To Yuzvendra Chahal's Asia Cup Snub

Australia batting great Matthew Hayden showered rich praise on the senior leg-spinner Yuzvendra Chahal and labeled his absence from the Asia Cup squad of the India National Cricket Team as a ‘big omission’.

Chahal is one of the best leg spinners in India at the moment, but his recent form has not been very impressive. He wasn’t given the opportunity to play in the recently concluded three-match ODI series against West Indies and the leg-spinner has played just 2 50-over games in 2023.

Sharing his verdict on Chahal’s non-selection, Matthew Hayden said that the leg-spinner is a superb player, but so is his teammate Kuldeep Yadav and the decision to leave the former out would have been a tough one for the BCCI selectors.

“There’re some big omissions. Chahal in particular, that leg-spinner is such a superb player and (it) must be tough for the selectors because they’ve also got another one in Kuldeep (Yadav)…. he’s a superb player. So, they’ve gone for that as an option,” Hayden told media on the sidelines of the CEAT Cricket Rating Award in Mumbai, as quoted by PTI.

Gill hasn’t played a lot of one-day cricket for his country yet – Matthew Hayden

Matthew Hayden further said that Shubman Gill has not played many ODIs for India and Tilak Varma is yet to make his ODI debut, but they are fully capable of delivering match-winning performances on the big stage.

“(It) is this extreme talent, especially within the batting sense, that brings India to life. Gill hasn’t played a lot of one-day cricket for his country yet. Tilak Varma hasn’t played a game of one-day cricket for his country. But that doesn’t mean they’re not able to deliver.

“And this is what we’ve seen in the IPL. We’ve seen names which otherwise you’d have absolutely zero idea of, come to the IPL, not an international stage but certainly an international event, and set it alight. So, I feel very confident in the fact that Indian cricket is in good hands,” Hayden said.

Meanwhile, Asia Cup 2023 will commence on Wednesday, August 30, and the summit clash will be held on Sunday, September 17. The competition is set to be played in the One Day International (ODI) format.