Former India off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin has shared his preferred squad for the 2027 ODI World Cup, making a few surprising selections while leaving
out young batting sensation Vaibhav Sooryavanshi and wicketkeeper-batter Sanju Samson.
Speaking on Cricinfo, Ashwin backed a core of experienced players to spearhead India's campaign in the marquee tournament. He retained veterans Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli, while also including Shubman Gill, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul, and Ishan Kishan in his batting group.
Ashwin also expressed confidence in Gill continuing as India's captain, with the youngster expected to lead the side into the next ODI World Cup.
For the all-rounders' slots, the former spinner picked Hardik Pandya and Axar Patel, while Kuldeep Yadav was his preferred frontline spinner. His pace attack featured Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj, and Harshit Rana.
Interestingly, Ashwin placed several players in a 'maybe' category, admitting that he was undecided about their chances of making the final squad. The list included Yashasvi Jaiswal, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Varun Chakaravarthy, Ravindra Jadeja, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Mohammed Shami, Arshdeep Singh, and Prasidh Krishna.
Ashwin backs Bhuvneshwar Kumar's return
One of the biggest talking points from Ashwin's discussion was his support for Bhuvneshwar Kumar's return to India's ODI setup despite the veteran pacer being away from the format since 2022.
Ashwin felt India's think tank should communicate with Bhuvneshwar and prepare him for the challenges of the 2027 World Cup by ensuring he gets enough cricket across formats before the team tours South Africa.
"Bhuvneshwar Kumar is a yes. I would communicate to him. Get him to play all the tournaments, first-class, Vijay Hazare, everything, and get him prime going to South Africa. I think we will need him there," Ashwin said on Cricinfo.
The right-arm pacer played a key role in Royal Challengers Bengaluru's back-to-back IPL title triumphs, claiming 45 wickets in 30 matches across the last two seasons at an average of 21.87 and an economy rate of 8.56.
Overall, Bhuvneshwar has represented India in 121 ODIs, picking up 141 wickets at an average of 35.11. His best figures in the format remain 5/42, while his economy rate of 5.08 underlines his effectiveness with the new ball.
