Fleming on Team India’s Decision to Bench Jaiswal in T20 WC

Former New Zealand cricketer Stephen Fleming recently commented on Team India’s decision to keep Yashasvi Jaiswal on the bench during the ongoing T20 World Cup 2024. Fleming noted that the Men in Blue had to make tough choices, including benching a talented player like Jaiswal.

Jaiswal, yet to make his debut in the current T20 World Cup, has seen Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli preferred as the opening pair. The 22-year-old made his T20I debut in 2023 against West Indies and has since scored 502 runs in 17 matches and 16 innings. In the IPL 2024, Jaiswal scored 435 runs in 15 matches for the Rajasthan Royals (RR).

Speaking on the ‘ESPNCricinfo Timeout show,’ Fleming acknowledged the challenge of leaving out top-quality players. He praised Team India for their strong performance and highlighted their strategic use of spinners in the West Indies.

“They had to make some hard calls. While Jaiswal is a great player, leaving out top-quality players is always difficult. Having a plan and sticking to it when you have great players on the sidelines is challenging because it’s tempting to look for greener pastures. But I like the job they’ve done—they’ve got through. This team, in some ways, is picked for the finals in my view. It has spinners that can dominate, and players who can handle spin. We’ve seen spin play a big role in the West Indies, though not as much in New York,” Fleming said, as quoted by ESPNcricinfo.

India will aim to perform well against Afghanistan (June 20), Bangladesh (June 22), and Australia (June 24), securing big wins to qualify for the semifinals. The team hopes to end their ICC trophy drought since the 2013 Champions Trophy and win their first T20 World Cup since the inaugural edition in 2007.

The Men in Blue have showcased a remarkable performance in the group stage, finishing at the top of Group A with seven points.

Squad: Rohit Sharma (C), Hardik Pandya, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Virat Kohli, Suryakumar Yadav, Rishabh Pant, Sanju Samson, Shivam Dube, Ravindra Jadeja, Axar Patel, Kuldeep Yadav, Yuzvendra Chahal, Arshdeep Singh, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammad Siraj.