Abhinav Mukund picks Team India squad for ODI World Cup 2027, surprisingly snubs Ravindra Jadeja

Abhinav Mukund picked an interesting Indian side for the upcoming ODI World Cup, which is going to be played in South Africa, Zimbabwe, and Namibia next year.

The former India opener shared his picks via Cricinfo YouTube channel, where he mentioned Shubman Gill, Rohit Sharma, and Virat Kohli in the top three but left out backup opener Yashasvi Jaiswal. However, Mukund did name Ishan Kishan in his squad, who can be a backup to first-choice wicketkeeper-batter KL Rahul, or even slot in for one of the batters in India's top three. India's T20I skipper and ODI vice-captain also found a place in the side.

In the spin-bowling all-rounder's role, Mukund picked Axar Patel and Washington Sundar, leaving no space for Ravindra Jadeja. Meanwhile, Kuldeep Yadav was the sole specialist spinner in the line-up. Hardik Pandya, on the other hand, was the lone seam-bowling all-rounder.

Considering the wickets in Africa, where the pacers are expected to get good bounce and movement, Mukund named a five-man seam-bowling department, comprising Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj, Prasidh Krishna, Harshit Rana, and Gurnoor Brar. However, Mohammed Shami, who hasn't played for the Men in Blue since the Champions Trophy final last year against New Zealand, hasn't found a place in Mukund's XI. Even Arshdeep Singh, who is India's leading wicket-taker in T20Is was not picked.

Abhinav Mukund's Team India XI for 2027 ODI World Cup: Shubman Gill, Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, KL Rahul, Ishan Kishan, Shreyas Iyer, Hardik Pandya, Axar Patel, Washington Sundar, Kuldeep Yadav, Harshit Rana, Prasidh Krishna, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj, Gurnoor Brar.

Mukund also mentioned five 'Maybe's' - players who could make it to the side for the marquee event. Yashasvi Jaiswal and Ruturaj Gaikwad were the only two batters he picked in that category. Meanwhile, seam-bowling all-rounders Nitish Kumar Reddy and Shivam Dube made it to that list alongside seamer Arshdeep.

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The cricketer-turned-expert also named several cricketers who have not chance of making it to the side like Sanju Samson, Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, Abhishek Sharma, and Tilak Varma among others.