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Yashasvi Jaiswal
Inns 6 | Runs 102 | Ave 17 | SR 137.83 | 50+ 0
Yashasvi Jaiswal had more or less sealed his place for the T20 World Cup with his impressive attacking strokeplay in T20s across the last year. Or so it seemed. In this year’s Indian Premier League (IPL), the 22-year-old has struggled for runs, having managed just over 100 runs in six innings so far.
In IPL 2023, he was brutal against the pacers in the powerplay and did not let his guard down even against spinners – so much so that he was not dismissed even once against spin in the IPL last season. But this year, he has only managed to get out of the powerplay unscathed once.
More than that, there’s a pattern in the way he’s getting dismissed, putting his place in a spot of bother. Anything back of a full length, the southpaw has thrown his wicket away on more than one occasion, which certainly does not bode well for him.
Considering how his competitors have done, Jaiswal could very well miss out on T20WC selection.
Mohammed Siraj
Inns 6 | Wkts 4 | Ave 57.25 | SR 33 | Econ 10.40
Mohammed Siraj certainly does not warrant a place in the T20 World Cup squad based on the numbers above, after being the best powerplay bowler in IPL 2023, where he picked up 10 wickets.
This year, he has managed just one wicket at an economy rate of 12.3 – the most expensive in IPL 2024,among bowlers who have bowled at least five overs in the phase.
He has also conceded 10 sixes in the powerplay – the most – and 16 sixes overall, which is the second-most after Anrich Nortje (17). His form is one of many reasons behind Royal Challengers Bengaluru’s (RCB) dismal performance in the tournament.
As a result, he was dropped from the home game against Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) on April 15 (Monday). Will he still continue to partner Jasprit Bumrah at the T20 World Cup? At this rate, “Definitely not!”
Ravi Bishnoi
Inns 6 | Wkts 4 | Ave 36.50 | SR 28 | Econ 7.82
While Ravi Bishnoi has maintained a similar economy rate to last IPL, he has been lagging behind on remaining parameters. Bishoni was Lucknow Super Giants’ (LSG) leading wicket-taker in IPL 2023 with 16 wickets at 24.43 (SR 18.93).
However, this year, he has not hit the ground running. He had already picked up more wickets (5) in the first two matches last year than he has in the entire season thus far (4).
Not much has changed in the last two seasons: he has used his googlies – his main weapon – to good effect, he has been good against the left-handers, there has not been a massive difference in his average speed, and he's done well at the death as well.
But that wickets column could go against him.
While there is still a long way to go, Yuzvendra Chahal and Kuldeep Yadav’s form could well put Bishnoi behind in the pecking order, unless something drastically changes.
KL Rahul
Inns 6 | Runs 204 | Ave 34 | SR 138.77 | 50+ 1
A quick look at those numbers and you wonder why KL Rahul is even on this list. But there’s a good reason for that.
Ahead of the season, many wanted Rahul to bat in the middle order, given India’s lengthy opening options. Batting in the middle-order would have given him the edge as India are on the lookout for a wicketkeeper-batter to slot in there.
He could have been one of the names in the hat along with Rishabh Pant and Sanju Samson. However, despite showing better intent in the powerplay compared to the last few seasons, Rahul could still find himself behind in the pecking order. Could his decision to not play in the middle-order potentially cost him a spot in the T20 World Cup squad?
Axar Patel
Inns 6 | Runs 51 | SR 138.77 | Wkts 4 | Econ 7.25
Axar Patel had a terrific 2023 in T20 cricket both for Delhi Capitals (DC) and for Team India with both bat and ball.
While it’s still early days, 2024 has not started well for him. He has been at his wily best with the ball, but it is what he offers with the bat that has taken a slight hit. That is largely down to some lazy running between the wickets, which has seen him get run out twice in his three dismissals this season. His biggest contribution with the bat has been a 13-ball 21 in DC's season opener; since then, he's only crossed double digits once in the next four innings.
This is not a good sign for Axar as he could potentially have extended India’s batting line-up.
Mukesh Kumar
Inns 3 | Wkts 5 | Ave 22.2 | SR 13.2 | Econ 10.09
Since January 2023, among fast bowlers, Mukesh Kumar played the most T20Is (14) for India after Arshdeep Singh (23). This allowed him to stake his claim for a place in the XI but he returned with underwhelming numbers (12 wickets, 34.33 avg, 21.9 SR, 9.39 ER).
In IPL this season Mukesh has not shown improvement at the death, conceding at 12.4 an over, compared to 11.7 last season. While he bowled an excellent spell against Chennai Super Kings (CSK), picking up three wickets, he has been on the expensive side overall with an economy rate of 10.1, only slightly better than last IPL (7 wickets, ER 10.5).
If he does not turn things around quickly, it is hard to imagine Mukesh featuring in India’s scheme of things.
Shreyas Iyer
Inns 5 | Runs 129 | Ave 43 | SR 120.56 | 50+ 0
No, the short ball is not the problem here for Shreyas Iyer, but he has been slow off the blocks this season. In balls 1-20, only one other player has a worse strike rate than Shreyas (Min: 70 runs) and only one from the below list (Riyan Parag) has gone on to have a good season.
While the Kolkata Knight Riders’ (KKR) skipper could still make the reserves, a place in the starting XI seems to be a tad tougher with this approach, considering India’s top four, and his slowness doesn’t allow him to be slotted any further below.
A different approach could have enticed the selectors in somehow slotting Iyer in the middle order, but as things stand, the 29-year-old will most probably not be on the list of players travelling as a first-choice.
