The India national cricket team faces a major selection drama ahead of their crucial Super Eight clash against South Africa at the T20 World Cup 2026 in Ahmedabad. Ahead of this match, former India cricketer Deep Dasgupta has made a bold prediction about India’s playing XI.
Deep Dasgupta predicts major changes in the playing eleven for the South Africa match
Cricket pundit suggested that Axar Patel should not be played against South Africa. The spin bowling all-rounder played the first three matches of the ongoing T20 World Cup 2026, but was dropped for the last game against Netherlands.
It is being said that the Indian team management is seriously thinking about including Washington Sundar in place of Axar Patel for the big match to be held at the Narendra Modi Stadium.
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However, Dasgupta admitted that Akshar’s place in the playing eleven depends on the selection of Arshdeep Singh. This decision will play an important role in giving Jasprit Bumrah complete freedom to bowl at any time in the crucial Super 8 clash with the Proteas team.
Arshdeep Singh’s selection will decide Akshar Patel’s place.
“If Arshdeep is playing, they can go with Axar. If Arshdeep is not playing, I would prefer to go with Washington, and the reason is to bowl with the new ball, which Washington does to you regularly, the first two overs,” Deep Dasgupta said on Star Sports.
He further added, “There is not much to choose between Akshar and Washington. I think the one thing that might tilt towards Washington is whether Arshdeep is playing or not, because I think you need the freedom of (Jasprit) Bumrah in his four overs.
You can use Bumrah whenever you want. You don’t want to tie it down. I think there are two choices that need to be made and they are interconnected.”
Deep Dasgupta explains why Washington Sundar is a strong choice for India
The cricket pundit also explained why he wants India to play Sundar before the start against South Africa. He said that they have three strong left-handed batsmen in their top order – Quinton de Kock, Ryan Rickelton and David Miller – so it would be more logical to have an off-spinner like Sundar, as he can trouble the left-handed batsmen more with the ball.
Dasgupta signed off by saying, “So maybe they would want to continue with Washington Sundar. Also, when you are thinking about batting, you won’t need Axar Patel batting as much at No. 8, and Washington is also not far behind in batting.”
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Big names ready for Asian Games
Earlier, BCCI had shared a list of probable players with the Indian Olympic Association (IOA). This list will soon be sent to the Asian Games organizers for final approval. According to the Times of India report, the team has already been prepared and finalized internally.
Some big names are expected to be part of the Indian team for the upcoming Asian Games. And these players include Abhishek Sharma, Ishan Kishan, Tilak Verma, Shivam Dubey and Hardik Pandya. Apart from them, Mohammad Siraj, Arshdeep Singh, Varun Chakraborty, Washington Sundar, Akshar Patel and Rinku Singh have also been selected in the team.
Notably, the Men in Blue will begin their Super 8 round match against South Africa on February 22 at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad. They had faced each other in the final of the previous edition.
