Former India opener Wasim Jaffer believes Shikhar Dhawan should be included in the Indian squad for the upcoming ICC World Cup 2023. At the same time, Jaffer said that he would exclude Yuzvendra Chahal from the squad. The former Mumbai batsman also included KL Rahul and Sanju Samson as his wicket-keeping options. In the bowling department, Jaffer opted for three spinners, all of them being left-arm options, with Kuldeep Yadav potentially making a comeback in his selected squad. The first game of the competition for India is scheduled against Australia on October 8 in Chennai.

“My three openers will be Rohit Sharma, Shubman Gill and Shikhar Dhawan. Even though Shikhar Dhawan is not going to be picked, I will keep him as the backup opener. Even if he doesn’t play at the start, I am okay with that,” Jaffer said on Jio Cinema.

Wasim Jaffer included Virat Kohli at number 3 and Shreyas Iyer at the number 4 position, followed by KL Rahul at 5 and Hardik Pandya at 6. He further said that his three spinners in the playing XI would be Ravindra Jadeja, Axar Patel, and Kuldeep Yadav.

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Wasim Jaffer then disclosed his names for the fast-bowling department. He mentioned that he would be content even if Hardik Pandya didn’t bowl his full quota of overs, stating that the World Cup being played in India makes it crucial for Pandya to bowl. Jaffer named Jasprit Bumrah and either Mohammed Siraj or Mohammed Shami as his two specialist seamers in the playing XI.

“My third spinner will obviously be Kuldeep. My fourth seamer will be Shardul Thakur. Sanju Samson will be my backup keeper because I have already picked Shikhar as my third opener,” Jaffer said.

Wasim Jaffer’s preferred Indian World Cup squad

Rohit Sharma, Shubman Gill, Shikhar Dhawan, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul, Hardik Pandya, Ravindra Jadeja, Axar Patel, Kuldeep Yadav, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj, Mohammad Shami, Sanju Samson, Shardul Thakur.