“He is lucky to be in that squad”, Tom Moody on Suryakumar Yadav selection in ODI World Cup squad.

Former Australian all-rounder Tom Moody has raised concerns about the selection of Suryakumar Yadav in Team India’s 15-member World Cup 2023 squad, which was unveiled on Tuesday, September 5. While the inclusion of KL Rahul due to fitness reasons did not come as a major surprise, the core of the squad closely resembled the players from the Asia Cup squad.

What has raised eyebrows, however, is the decision to include Suryakumar Yadav in the squad, despite his underwhelming performance in One Day Internationals (ODIs). This choice has prompted questions, particularly when there were other middle-order contenders such as Sanju Samson and Tilak Varma in the mix.

In an interview with ESPNCricinfo, Tom Moody expressed his opinion on the Indian World Cup squad. He suggested that the team management might have been better off selecting Tilak Varma, who offers a left-handed batting option.

Moody said “He is lucky to be in that squad purely because of the case that mounts against him for someone like Tilak Varma who gives you that left-hand batting specialist in the middle order who can bowl part-time spin, It gives them flexibility around the Ishan Kishan discussion. Doesn’t mean both of them can’t play in the same side but it gives the flexibility that Rohit Sharma talked about quite regularly in the press conference.”