Tuesday 16 / April / 2024
Muscat: India and Australia have announced their squads for the 2019 Cricket World Cup.
While India have chosen to go with a tried and tested squad at the World Cup, Australia have decided to include the duo of Steve Smith and David Warner, who were found guilty of ball-tampering in the 2018 Australian ball-tampering scandal.
The 2011 champions have opted for a mix of youth and experience in the team that will travel to the UK in May.
Virat Kohli will captain the team, while Rohit Sharma has been named vice-captain. Veteran wicket-keeper Mahendra Singh Dhoni will be the Men in Blue’s first-choice behind the stumps, while Dinesh Karthik has also been included.
Among the others to make the cut are Shikhar Dhawan, KL Rahul, Vijay Shankar, Yuzvendra Chahal, Kuldeep Yadav, Bhuvaneshwar Kumar, Jaspreet Bumrah, Hardik Pandya, Ravindra Jadeja and Mohammed Shami.
New Zealand were the first nation to name their squad for the upcoming 2019 Cricket World Cup, and teams have until 23 April to announce their 15-man squads for the tournament. They have until 23 May to make adjustments to their squads to account for absences due to injury or other unforeseen circumstances.
According to the International Cricket Council, Australia had also intended to announce their squad on 15 April, and have named Josh Hazlewood and Kane Richardson as standbys to their main setup. Backup wicketkeeper Peter Handscomb will also not travel.
Aaron Finch will captain the Aussies, who are World Cup cricket’s most successful team, with Alex Carey named as the only wicketkeeper in the squad. Jason Behrendorff, Nathan Coulter-Nile, Pat Cummins and Usman Khawaja have all been drafted.
Also returning are Steve Smith and David Warner, who were in the centre of the ball-tampering scandal that rocket Australian cricket last year. Others in the team are Nathan Lyon, Shaun Marsh, Glenn Maxwell, Jhye Richardson, Mitchell Starc, Marcus Stoinis and Adam Zampa.
Pakistan are expected to name their squad on 18 April, as will the South Africans. The Afghans have already announced a preliminary 23-man team, while Bangladesh will announce their team between 15 and 20 April. Hosts England will name their side on the 17th, while both the West Indies and Sri Lanka have not provided an official date on squad announcements.
India squad in full: Virat Kohli (C), Rohit Sharma (VC), Shikhar Dhawan, KL Rahul, Vijay Shankar, MS Dhoni (WK), Kedar Jadhav, Dinesh Karthik, Yuzvendra Chahal, Kuldeep Yadav, Bhuvaneshwar Kumar, Jaspreet Bumrah, Hardik Pandya, Ravindra Jadeja, Mohammed Shami
Australia squad in full: Aaron Finch (C), Jason Behrendorff, Alex Carey (WK), Nathan Coulter-Nile, Pat Cummins, Usman Khawaja, Nathan Lyon, Shaun Marsh, Glenn Maxwell, Jhye Richardson, Steve Smith, Mitchell Starc, Marcus Stoinis, David Warner, Adam Zampa
