Coincidence or BCCI’s demand? A day after being named in the India cricket team’s squad for the T20 World Cup 2024, Shivam Dube has bowled his first over since February. The Chennai Super Kings all-rounder had 9 IPL 2024 matches without getting a bowl, but with nothing working, skipper Ruturaj Gaikwad decided to hand the medium pacer the ball.
And what did he do? The right-arm pacer got a wicket on the second ball he bowled. That too of the dangerous Jonny Bairstow, who had scored an unbeaten 108 against the Kolkata Knight Riders in the last match he played. Dube bowled a short ball outside off-stump that held up a little. Bairstow tried to guide it to third man but managed to get an outside edge that MS Dhoni grabbed with ease.
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BCCI told CSK to give Shivam Dube a go?
With Hardik Pandya struggling with both the bat and ball in hand, it could be possible that the BCCI advised the Chennai Super Kings to hand the pacer the ball. Shivam Dube had bowled in a T20 match in January against Afghanistan. He even managed to get 2 wickets in that series.
But a side strain injury he sustained in the Ranji Trophy had stopped him from bowling. After nearly three months, he’s back with the ball in hand. With just a month left before the T20 World Cup 2024 kicks off, the time is perfect to get some reps in and be ready to bowl if and when the India cricket team requires him to do so.
India’s T20 World Cup 2024 squad
Rohit Sharma (c), Hardik Pandya (vc), Yashasvi Jaiswal, Virat Kohli, Suryakumar Yadav. Rishabh Pant (wk), Sanju Samson (wk), Shivam Dube, Ravindra Jadeja, Axar Patel, Kuldeep Yadav. Yuzvendra Chahal, Arshdeep Singh, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj.
Reserves – Shubman Gill, Rinku Singh, Khaleel Ahmed and Avesh Khan.
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