Indian captain Rohit Sharma disclosed that Indian Premier League (IPL) performances played a lesser role in squad selection for the 2024 T20 World Cup. He said that selectors and the leadership group had already decided on the core team before the ongoing season of the IPL. Following India’s T20 World Cup squad announcement, Rohit and chief selector Ajit Agarkar addressed the media in Mumbai on May 2.
It's not like there's anyone new: Rohit Sharma
"We sort of make your playing XI in your mind and try and work around it. A lot of the prep, the talk happens during the IPL and a lot of these guys have been playing this format for a while. It's not like there's anyone new. They all have been playing international cricket and the IPL. The talk of what our 15 was going to be like started much before the IPL,” Rohit Sharma said during the press conference in Mumbai on April 2.
"Look, I think a lot of the ICC tournaments that we played in the recent past...we were fortunate that we had Asia Cup before the 50-over World Cup. And we didn't have any games before the WTC final last year. We straight from IPL moved into that final. Like Ajit said rightly, we started talking about what the combination would look like," Rohit added.
'We just had to look at a few individuals during the IPL'
Rohit Sharma added that approximately 70-80% of the squad had already been decided and the selectors were looking at IPL 2024 performances for the remaining spots.
"We just had to look at a few individuals during the IPL. In the IPL, the performance changes every day, you can't really change your plan around it. We had an idea of what our core group, 70-80 per cent of the squad before the IPL. And a few changes after that, we were prepared for that as well," Rohit further said.
Rohit went on to say that many selections were anticipated, the inclusion of players like Shivam Dube, Yuzvendra Chahal, and possibly Yashasvi Jaiswal was largely due to their performances in the IPL 2024.
India's T20 World Cup 2024 Squad
Rohit Sharma (C), Virat Kohli, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Suryakumar Yadav, Rishabh Pant (WK), Sanju Samson (WK), Hardik Pandya (VC), Shivam Dube, Ravindra Jadeja, Axar Patel, Kuldeep Yadav, Yuzvendra Chahal, Arshdeep Singh, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj.
Reserves - Shubman Gill, Rinku Singh, Khaleel Ahmed, Avesh Khan.
India’s Fixtures for T20 World Cup 2024-(Group A matches)
| Date | Match | Venue |
| 5 June | India vs Ireland | Nassau County International Cricket Stadium, New York |
| 9 June | India vs Pakistan | Nassau County International Cricket Stadium, New York |
| 12 June | USA vs India | Nassau County International Cricket Stadium, New York |
| 15 June | India vs Canada | Central Broward Park & Broward County Stadium, Lauderhill |
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