1983 World Cup-winning star Dilip Vengsarkar has expressed surprise at Yashasvi Jaiswal’s omission from India’s T20 World Cup squad, pointing to the left-hander’s strong returns whenever he has featured in white-ball cricket and his consistent domestic performances over recent seasons. Despite delivering match-winning knocks in the IPL and showing the ability to dominate attacks at the top, Jaiswal has struggled to secure a run of games in T20Is, something that appears to have worked against him in the selection race.
The selectors opted for Abhishek Sharma as the frontline opener, preferring a combination that includes a wicketkeeper at the top, with Sanju Samson fitting that role, while Ishan Kishan has been brought back as the reserve option.
Vengsarkar voiced strong concern over Jaiswal’s continued absence from India’s plans, stressing that consistent runs across formats make it hard to justify leaving out a proven match-winner.
“It is unfortunate that Yashasvi is being left out time and again for no fault of his. He has been in tremendous form across all formats of the game, and I don’t know what else he has to do to get into the team,” Vengsarkar, who also served as chief selector in the late 2000s, was quoted as saying by PTI.
“Nobody should leave a match-winner out of the team,” he added.
‘I would have picked Jaiswal’: Vengsarkar
Meanwhile, Shubman Gill’s omission also sparked widespread debate. Having served as vice-captain in the previous T20I series, he was widely tipped to feature in the squad, especially after his recent elevation within the leadership group. However, a lean run in the format this year eventually cost him his place at the eleventh hour.
Analysing the selection calls around Gill and Jaiswal, Vengsarkar offered a balanced view, backing the selectors’ emphasis on current form. He also made it clear that, given the choice, he would have leaned towards Jaiswal as Gill’s replacement for his consistency and impact at the top.
“They are all excellent players, but I am with the selection committee when they judge players on the basis of current form and fitness. The current form does play an important role in the context of selection. And if you ask whom I would have picked instead of Gill, my choice would have been Jaiswal. He has proven time and again what a class performer he is and has always given the team the kind of starts required these days,” said the former India skipper.
