Ravi Shastri Says He "Had No Say" In Ambati Rayudu's Exclusion From India's 2019 ODI World Cup Squad

Ravi Shastri has revealed that he had no say in Ambati Rayudu being dropped for the 2019 World Cup in England. Rayadu was a regular in India's ODI setup during the 2018-19 season. Meanwhile, he was rather surprisingly overlooked for the tournament despite having excelled at the No.4 spot in the build-up.

Former India head coach Ravi Shastri has revealed that he didn't have a say in middle-order batsman Ambati Rayudu being dropped from India's 2019 World Cup squad. Rayudu had scored 639 runs at 42.60 from 21 matches between January 2018 and March 2019. Moreover, he was primed to bat at No.4 for India at the marquee tournament. But, he was overlooked for all-rounder Vijay Shankar in the final squad.

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"I had no say in that," Shastri told timesofindia.com. "But I wasn't okay with three wicketkeepers being picked for the World Cup. Either Ambati or Shreyas could've come in. What was the logic in having MS Dhoni, Rishabh, and Dinesh all together? But I never interfered with the selectors' work, except when I was asked for feedback or as part of a general discussion."

Shastri revealed that he wasn't okay with the idea of multiple wicketkeepers in the squad. Meanwhile, that's why Rayudu and Shreyas Iyer could've made the cut. Apart from former captain MS Dhoni, India had two specialist wicketkeepers in Dinesh Karthik and Rishabh Pant in the squad. Moreover, we all knew that KL Rahul and Kedar Jadhav were also in the squad who can also keep wickets.

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Ravi Shastri reckons Shreyas Iyer or Ambati Rayudu should've made it to the squad

"I had no say in that (team selection). But I wasn't okay with three wicketkeepers being picked for the World Cup. Either Ambati or Shreyas could've come in.

Former Indian head Coach Ravi Shastri said

"What was the logic in having MS Dhoni, Rishabh , and Dinesh all together?", remarked Shastri.

The former head coach further said, "But I never interfered with the selectors' work, except when I was asked for feedback or as part of a general discussion."

It is worth mentioning that Ambati Rayudu was excluded from Team India's squad for the 2019 World Cup despite averaging around 50 at number 4 for India. A couple of ordinary performances in the series prior to the World Cup meant that all-rounder Vijay Shankar was given the nod ahead of him. It says that the latter's '3-D skills' are in each of the three departments of the game.

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Speaking about India's 2019 World Cup campaign, where they lost to New Zealand in the semis, Shastri has expressed his displeasure regarding the team selection before and during the World Cup.