T20 World Cup 2024: Should Yuzvendra Chahal be a part of the India Squad?

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India's upcoming ICC venture is the T20 World Cup and the rehearsal is in full mode as the IPL enters its second half.

With many top-notch performances across the tournament already, the battle for the 15-man squad is also heating up.

The BCCI is likely to announce the squad soon and there will be a lot of debate as many contenders may not find a place in the team. In the spin department, India may travel with two frontline spinners and the race for those positions is in full throttle.

Yuzvendra Chahal has shown his mettle in the IPL 2024 for Rajasthan Royals. The leg-spinner has weaved his magic and has 13 wickets in the season so far. The 33-year-old became the first bowler to claim 200 IPL wickets and has made a strong case to join the Indian team for the upcoming T20 World Cup.

But is his place in the India squad already cemented? If we take a look at the dynamics of the Indian team in the past year or so, Chahal is way down the pecking order. As a leg-spinner, Ravi Bishnoi and Rahul Chahar have played regularly for India. But Chahal's stellar form in the IPL has boosted his cause.

Former India player Irfan Pathan recently said he would rather have Ravi Bishnoi and Kuldeep Yadav as spinners. Given Chahal's not-so-good fielding quality, which is essential in the T20 format, the Haryana-born can be axed.

"I would rather have two proper wrist spinners playing, Bishnoi and Kuldeep, in my playing 11. If you look at Bishnoi's numbers, you know, when he played as well, he was pretty good. Yes, we're talking about Chahal right now, because of the IPL performances and everything, but don't forget the fielding part of it as well. If you have to balance the fielding, you have to balance the, you know, where a bowler can bowl at the particular area," Pathan said on a Star Sports show.

But soon after that, Pathan had to go contradictory to his own statement. Chahal has been a match winner for India and his IPL teams over the years. The experience and the skill propel him forward in the race and someone like the leg-spinner can be the difference maker for India, as Pathan echoed.

"I reckon the last time he was playing in the World Cup, and I was doing the pre show, before the semi-final. And everyone had a say, and they were talking about a variety of things, and I said just get Yuzi Chahal in the playing eleven and you will go to the final. And I believed that at that particular time. You need that wrist spinner, and you have to find him in the playing eleven. It wasn't the case and we saw what happened in the semi-final," he added.

T20 WC 2024: Should Yuzvendra Chahal be picked in India Squad?

Yuzvendra Chahal's enigma is something that needs to be resolved. Although the player may not be the fittest while fielding, his skills with the ball in hand can't be denied.

He has risen from many adversities and possesses the qualities any elite bowler needs to be successful at the highest stage. India will be playing in USA and West Indies, where the pitch conditions can help the spinners. A player like Chahal brings the skills, as well as the experience with him, which a Ravi Bishnoi or a Rahul Chahar may not have. That's why, we reckon Yuzvendra Chahal must be 100 per cent in the flight for the T20 World Cup.