It’s a bitter pill to swallow. But the truth is, neither R Ashwin nor Mohammed Shami are automatic selections and the narrative is likely to persist throughout the World Cup no matter how hard it is for some former cricketers and fans to digest. And this has got nothing to do with their reputation. In fact, former India chairman of selectors, MSK Prasad, believes that Rohit Sharma and the Indian team management are spot on as far as team selection is concerned.
“What the team management is doing is absolutely right. If the wickets are conducive for spinners, then playing Ashwin is a good choice if it’s a flat deck then someone like Shardul offers something with both and the ball becomes an option. As far as Shami is concerned, I think will only play when the team management feels they need to rest either Siraj or Bumrah. They are very well set with this kind of balance,” Prasad told hindustantimes.com ahead of India’s match against Bangladesh in Pune.
Prasad believes both Ashwin and Shami would agree with the team management’s call.
“If you ask Ashwin, he will also agree with the team management’s decision. Do we require to win the championship or do we go on reputation? If we go by reputation then Siraj shouldn’t be playing, Shami should. This team has great camaraderie. Everybody has accepted this combination. As a fan, it pains me to see Shami sitting outside but if I’m thinking from the captain’s perspective, the decisions he is taking are fantastic ones. They are not going on reputation. They want to win the tournament by fielding the best possible XI on that particular day against that particular opposition,” he said.
