Former Australian all-rounder Shane Watson has expressed his astonishment over the exclusion of SunRisers Hyderabad (SRH) pacer T Natarajan from India’s T20 World Cup 2024 squad. Natarajan, with his impressive performance in the ongoing IPL season, has emerged as a strong contender for the Purple Cap, having claimed 13 wickets in just seven matches.
Watson highlighted Natarajan’s exceptional ability to consistently deliver yorkers, a skill that could have significantly benefited the Indian team. “His ability to put that yorker in, his variations of speed when he needs to bowl that, it’s something he continues to produce over and over again,” Watson said. “That’s why I was surprised that he wasn’t in the Indian T20 squad because of his consistency of performances, especially when he’s bowling in crucial times of the game when batters are going strong.”
Watson’s sentiments were echoed by former India captain Sunil Gavaskar, who also praised Natarajan’s performances in IPL 2024. “I was thinking more like T Natarajan, the left-arm pacer bowler. He has been bowling extremely well. So, I thought maybe he could have been in the team,” Gavaskar said.
Despite the exclusion of Natarajan, India’s T20 World Cup squad boasts a formidable pace attack led by Jasprit Bumrah. Mohammed Siraj and Arshdeep Singh are expected to compete for the second spot in the playing XI, while Khaleel Ahmed and Avesh Khan have been included in the list of travelling reserves.
India’s squad for T20 World Cup 2024:
* Rohit Sharma (C)
* Hardik Pandya (VC)
* Yashasvi Jaiswal
* Virat Kohli
* Suryakumar Yadav
* Rishabh Pant
* Sanju Samson
* Shivam Dube
* Ravindra Jadeja
* Axar Patel
* Kuldeep Yadav
* Yuzvendra Chahal
* Arshdeep Singh
* Mohammed Siraj
* Jasprit Bumrah
Reserves:
* Shubman Gill
* Rinku Singh
* Khaleel Ahmed
* Avesh Khan
