MUMBAI, APR 04,
Performances in the Indian Premier League should not be the criterion for World Cup team selection, avers India ODI vice-captain Rohit Sharma.
At a panel discussion, featuring Kevin Pietersen, Brian Lara, Mahela Jayawardene and Smriti Mandhana, after the unveiling of website cricket.com, Rohit said: “The IPL should not be the criterion (World Cup team selection). We have played enough international cricket in the last four years to see where we stand. “You cannot select a 50-over format team from a 20-over format tournament. IPL is a different ball game. That’s my opinion,” he said.“We have pretty much a settled side for the World Cup. There are a few spots to be filled. It all depends on what the captain, coach and selectors think,” he said. Decisions on an extra seamer or spinner or middle-order or opening batsman would depend on the English conditions, he said. West Indies legend Lara said: “The West Indies have match-winners, but that’s not enough to play in English conditions and win the World Cup. We need a team that is consistent.
“Once they are in the knockouts, they can beat any team. We have (Chris) Gayle, Sunil Narine, (Andre) Russell, (Dwayne) Bravo, all playing the IPL.”
Combination of errors
Meanwhile, former Sri Lanka captain Jayawardene said he was not sure if Sri Lanka Cricket had made a genuine attempt to build a team for the World Cup. On whether politics or the selection process had gone wrong, Jayawardene said: “It’s a combination of everything.
You plan for the World Cup years ahead, at least 12 months before to know what your combinations are.
“All of a sudden they say, there is a provincial tournament this week to finalise the World Cup squad; so that shows the bit of inconsistency in their approach.”
However, Jayawardene is still hopeful of the right players being picked.
“Things are not alarming because there is talent. There are some good players who have the experience of having played the World Cup, the final and performed. I am hoping that mental preparation is there.”
Jayawardene made it a point though to highlight Sri Lanka’s haphazard preparation.
Solutions required
“Leading to the World Cup, we haven’t done well. We have won only a handful of matches in the last 12 months. We have had eight different opening partners.
“The top four guys are going to be very crucial in the English conditions. I feel they need to find a solution for that.
“They need to back the guys who have done the job in the past, form a team with youth and experience, who will go out and express themselves.
“That’s the way forward and I hope common sense will prevail,” he said.
