Piyush Chawla could be Dhoni’s choice

Sanjay Manjrekar says Piyush Chawla’s all-round abilities led to his recall in India’s final 15 for the World Cup.

By Abhideep Das

Manjrekar, a former India batsman, also believes skipper MS Dhoni might have had a big say in Chawla’s selection.

Since news broke of India's squad for the World Cup to be held in the sub-continent from February 19, opinions have varied about Chawla's inlusion in the side. The leg-spinner got the nod ahead of left-arm spinner Pragyan Ojha, who has been relatively regular with the Indian team.

However, Manjrekar saw reason in the leggie making it for the prestigious ODI tournament.

Speaking exclusively to Mobile ESPN after the team was announced on Monday, Manjrekar said, “Dhoni perhaps wanted a variety in the spin bowling department. But he did not opt for a specialist spinner since both Harbhajan Singh and Ravichandran Ashwin, the other two spinners in the squad, can’t exactly be termed all-rounders. In this scenario, Chawla is one player who can regularly bowl 10 overs of leg-spin and also contribute usefully with the bat if need be. His good county performance with Sussex in the limited-overs format has also helped his cause.”

Chawla, with two hundreds and 19 fifties, has a decent batting average of 29.04 from 69 games in first-class cricket. The Uttar Pradesh lad also has four fifties in the ‘List A’ format.

Meanwhile, the selection committee also managed to raise some eyebrows after they opted to go without Mumbai middle-order batsman Rohit Sharma, who cracked a US$ 2 million deal in the auctions for the fourth edition of the Indian Premier League. 

Manjrekar, though, is not at surprised with the selectors’ decision to leave out the right-handed batsman: “Rohit has not been as consistent as other young guns like Virat Kohli and Suresh Raina in the ODI format. He did not quite cash in on the opportunities he got to prove himself. Although he had a good Ranji season with Mumbai, his inconsistent form in ODIs went against him,” said the Mumbaikar.

The ESPN-STAR Sports cricket commentator, however, seemed unhappy with the selectors going in with only four fast bowlers for the World Cup. 

“With the fitness of the pacers being of prime concern, I would have gone in with five seamers just to be on the safe side as they are always prone to injuries,” he said.

Dhoni is the lone specialist wicketkeeper in India’s World Cup squad but Manjrekar is not too worried about this. 

“We have seen in the past in ICC tournaments that seeking a replacement for an injured player is not a big issue. If need be, an urgent replacement can always be sought. Besides, Dhoni has shown over the years that he is willing to play on for the country despite some niggles. It is because of this sturdy and resolute nature of the captain that the selectors thought it is best not to waste an important spot in the team by going for a second wicketkeeper,” he added.

Manjrekar has also given a thumbs up to the Kris Srikkanth-led selection committee for choosing a good team.