T20 World Cup 2024: Sanju Samson discarded as Ajit Agarkar and Rohit Sharma finalise India's wicketkeeper

As the deadline looms for announcing the ICC T20 World Cup 2024 squad, the Indian selection committee, led by Ajit Agarkar, faces a challenging task to finalize the team combination.

Ajit Agarkar, who was spotted watching the Delhi Capitals versus Mumbai Indians IPL 2024 match, is reportedly having a discussion with Rohit Sharma regarding the T20 World Cup 2024 squad.

According to the Times of India, three key issues remain to be solved before BCCI Secretary Jay Shah calls for the formal announcement of the 15-member squad.

The Indian cricket team is scheduled to depart for the T20 World Cup 2024 on May 21. However, this flight will take only those players who will not be involved in the ongoing IPL 2024 at that time. One tricky issue revolves around the selection of the second wicketkeeper-batter for the upcoming T20 World Cup in 2024.

KL Rahul and Sanju Samson in race for the backup wicketkeeper for the ICC T20 World Cup 2024

With Rishabh Pant proving himself as the first-choice keeper for the ICC tournament with his fitness and form, selectors are undecided between Sanju Samson and KL Rahul for the backup wicketkeeper’s role.

Rahul and Samson both have impressive international records, but Yashasvi Jaiswal and Shubman Gill’s poor form in the ongoing IPL 2024 complicated the situation.

Despite Samson's exceptional season, Rahul's experience at the top of the order and his adaptability to batting in the middle order may earn him the backup keeper’s spot.

With Mohammad Shami sidelined due to injury, India's pace bowling attack looks vulnerable, especially after the Indian bowlers are conceding a lot of runs in the ongoing IPL 2024.

Despite this, the Indian cricket team management decided to stick with the experienced bowlers for the event. The national selectors need to decide whether to include an extra spinner like Ravi Bishnoi or an extra pacer, considering the seam bowling prowess of Hardik Pandya cannot be overlooked.

Others should not be compared with Jasprit Bumrah

They face a tough decision in order to maintain balance and effectiveness in the Indian seam attack in Shami's absence for the upcoming T20 World Cup 2024 in the USA and West Indies.

The BCCI source was quoted as saying by Times of India: “The team management wants to trust the players it has groomed. There are concerns about Siraj and Arshdeep going for so many runs but one has to look at the context. In these matches, you have to think about defending the target set by your team-even if you do it by 10 runs.”

The source added, “Jasprit Bumrah is different class. The others should not be compared with him. There won't be 'impact player' rule in the World Cup. Axar Patel, for example, has been exemplary with his economy rate.”

The selection committee remains cautious about taking decisions solely based on IPL 2024 performances, but a talent like Tilak Varma may still be considered for selection.

Shivam Dube may miss the flight to T20 World Cup 2024 because he is not bowling in the ongoing IPL 2024 for the Chennai Super Kings (CSK) due to the impact player rule.