Cricket pundits Ravi Shastri, Vernon Philander and Mark Nicholas were aghast at the ODI Team of the Year put out by Indian cricket's official broadcasters. The reason? The team features 8 Indian players in the XI.
The team selection hinges on fan votes, with players securing a place based on higher votes. While fans naturally favour their choices, statistics unveil a significant bias, as a whopping 70 per cent of the votes came from India, notably shaping the final composition.
'It's a joke!' exclaimed Shastri. 'Rashid Khan... does he play? I think there must be only Indians voting in there. No one else. Mitchell Marsh, Rashid Khan, Quinton de Kock. One player from the World Cup winning team in Adam Zampa?'
'What a No. 7. Rashid is one of the best around. For him not to make the cut there, unbelievable. Jadeja is the best all-rounder. Him and Rashid would have been the ideal combination across all surfaces in the world,' Shastri added.
The team includes Rohit Sharma and Shubman Gill as openers, Virat Kohli at 3, followed by Daryl Mitchell at 4. The middle order comprises K L Rahul at 5 and Heinrich Klaasen at 6. Adam Zampa takes the No. 7 spot, while Kuldeep Yadav is the other spinner at 8.
The fast-bowling attack is dominated by India, with Mohammed Shami, Mohammed Siraj, and Jasprit Bumrah making the XI.
DGlenn Maxwell, who played arguably the greatest ODI innings of all time against Afghanistan at the World Cup, is not even in the team!
'If I am Quinton de Kock, I'll be highly disappointed to be missing out on selection. With his last year in ODI cricket and to sign off in the way he did... He is an incredible player,' Philander said. 'I understand that all these guys are worthy of selection; they've had a wonderful year, especially the Indians.'
'Virat brings stability. But for me, maybe an Aiden Markram. David Miller another name. Glenn Maxwell, how can you leave him out? There are just so many to pick from,' Philander added. 'If I was Maxwell, I would feel really hard done by selection.'
