Should Umran Malik Be Picked For India’s T20 World Cup Squad? Ravi Shastri Says “No”. Here’s Why

Umran Malik’s selection in the Indian cricket squad for the five-match T20I series against South Africa, which started on Thursday, has raised expectations from the 22-year-old pacer. Having enthralled all with his speed in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2022, Umran’s rise is being closely followed. Many former players, including the great Dale Steyn, believe that it’s time for Umran to be inducted into the playing XI. With only a handful of series for the Indian cricket team before the T20 World Cup in Australia in October, Umran needs to make his mark quick at the international level if he wants to book a berth in the Indian squad for the showpiece event.

However, former Indian cricket team coach Ravi Shastri feels that it’s too early to give the youngster the big break.

“No, not T20 as yet. Groom him. Take him with your team. If anything, let him start playing white-ball cricket, that is 50-over cricket, maybe even red-ball cricket. Groom him there with the in the red ball team and then see how it goes,” he said in an discussion on ESPNcricinfo.

“I think he should be around the Indian team all the while, even if he is not in the squad. I think they need to manage him…His time will come,” Daniel Vettori, former New Zealand cricket team captain, added.

Ahead of the T20I series, India head coach Rahul Dravid gave his take on the pacer.

“Yeah, it is exciting. He certainly bowled quick and with pace. Another thing which has been interesting for me watching the IPL from the outside is the number of Indian bowlers bowling fast. And obviously, being coach of all three formats of the game, I would love to see that translated into the longer formats of the game. But it is brilliant in terms of watching Umran in the nets, you can see that he has got that pace,” said Dravid.

Promoted

“Obviously, he is learning. He is a young boy and he is getting better, improving. The more he is able to play, the better he is going to get. From our, perspective, very happy to have someone like him in the mix. We have to see how much playing time we can give him, we need to be realistic, we have a large squad, it is not possible to give everyone playing XI time. I think I am certainly someone who likes to have that consistency.”

Playing for SunRisers Hyderabad, Umran Malik took 22 wickets in 14 matches to finish as the fourth-highest wicket-taker.