India's lack of trust in batting and selection process exposed by Mohammed Siraj's ODI omission

The Indian selection committee has been known for its unpredictable decisions during squad announcements for ICC events in recent years. Ambati Rayudu's exclusion from the 2019 World Cup squad, despite being considered as the number 4 batsman, raised eyebrows. Similarly, Yuzvendra Chahal's surprise omission from the 2021 T20 World Cup squad left many baffled. The recent snub of Mohammed Siraj is particularly puzzling, especially given the Indian team's current struggles with fitness issues among their key fast bowlers. With two strike pacers sidelined, Siraj's exclusion seems even more peculiar.

The selection committee has picked four spin-bowling options - Ravindra Jadeja, Axar Patel, Washington Sundar, and Kuldeep Yadav - while only three pacers were selected for the squad.

What more could Siraj have done more?

Team India played only three ODIs last year, which didn't give the selectors much to look at regarding the players' recent form in the format. They had to go back to the World Cup year 2023 to take note of the players' ODI credentials, but then how can Siraj miss out on the Champions Trophy? It's a big mystery as Siraj was the leading wicket-taking pacer for India in 2023 with 44 wickets in his kitty.

The 30-year-old carried the Indian pace attack on his back when Bumrah and Shami were nursing their respective injuries and became the workhorse for the skipper wherever India played.

Rohit and Co. will play their Champions Trophy matches in Dubai, where the conditions are expected to be identical to those in India. Siraj holds a terrific bowling record in Asia with 63 wickets in 37 ODIs at a stellar strike rate of 25.8.

What did Rohit Sharma say about Siraj's exclusion?

Rohit Sharma stated that Siraj was unfortunate to miss out, but he bluntly criticized Siraj's low effectiveness with the old ball, which contributed to his exclusion.

"Siraj's effectiveness comes down a little bit if he's not going to take the new ball. We discussed it at length and we are only taking three seamers there (CT) because we wanted all the all-rounders with us," Rohit said at the press conference.

"It's an unfortunate thing that he (Siraj) has to miss out but we had no option but to get the guys who can perform a certain role,” he said.

Rohit suggested that India wanted to be an all-rounder-heavy side, which clearly depicts their low confidence in Indian batters, as most of them have not been at their best recently. Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma have struggled miserably in recent times when it comes to the red-ball format, while Shubman Gill and KL Rahul also lacked consistency with the bat last year.

The lack of confidence in the batting line-up forced the selectors to pick only three specialist pacers in the squad, which has been the case for them in the recent past. They picked four all-round options in Pandya, Sundar, Jadeja and Axar to strengthen the batting unit but left a chink in their bowling armoury.

Siraj's effectiveness with the new ball!

30-year-old Siraj might not have been the best with the old ball, but he is second to none when it comes to troubling the batters with the new ball. Of the 71 wickets he claimed, 40 were the top 3 batters of the side. His ability to swing the ball away from the batter and the surprise wobble seam delivery proved to be handy for every batting line-up in the world.

His terrific spell against Sri Lanka in the 2023 Aisa Cup final was one of the best fast-bowling displays by an Indian pacer in a final of any tournament. He claimed six wickets for just 21 runs as Sri Lanka were bundled out for just 50 to make it a cakewalk for the visitors.

How Shami's 2023 WC exploits push Siraj down in the pecking order?

Siraj started as Bumrah's bowling partner in the 2023 ODI World Cup, but an injury to Hardik Pandya midway through the tournament turned out to be a blessing in disguise for India as Mohammed Shami started getting a chance in the XI. The Bengal pacer ran riot with the ball and became the tournament's leading wicket-taker with 24 scalps in just 7 matches. Since then, the tide has shifted a bit against Siraj as he has been dropped down in the pecking order behind Bumrah and Shami. Meanwhile, with the Champions Trophy squad announcement, it seems like Arshdeep Singh has also pipped him in the race as India's wait to find a left-arm pacer in the ODI side after Zaheer Khan might get ends with the Punjab star.

However, picking only pacers for a marquee event like the Champions Trophy might turn out to be a big blunder.

Workload management is an excuse for Siraj's exit, but is it justified?

Since the start of 2023, Siraj has bowled 683.5 overs, the highest by an Indian pacer. He has undoubtedly been the workhorse of the Indian bowling unit, and former Indian cricketer Irfan Pathan suggested that the workload might be the reason behind Siraj's exit. However, workload management often takes place during bilateral contests and not during ICC events. The team management could have rested him for the last one or two Tests against Australia to manage his workload, but sitting out for the Champions Trophy isn't an ideal scenario. Meanwhile, the decision to pick Harshit Rana over him in the squad for England ODIs might suggest that Gautam Gambhir, who took over the coaching duties of the Indian team last year, doesn't have Siraj in his plans for white-ball formats.

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