Days after India lost to England in the semi-finals of the T20 World Cup in Adelaide, the Board’s bigwigs got together to draw the blueprint for the game’s shortest format.

India’s brand of cricket was considered far from aggressive and fearless. In an attempt to make their foray into an unchartered territory, the national selectors picked a young side under Hardik Pandya which was supposed to crack the T20 code.

For more than a year the likes of Yashasvi Jaiswal, Ishan Kishan, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Rinku Singh, Tilak Varma, Jitesh Sharma, Ravi Bishnoi and Suryakumar Yadav were branded specialists who could pack enough firepower to meet the growing demands of the format. The move paid off with victories in New Zealand and Ireland besides series triumphs versus Australia and Sri Lanka at home.

But India’s glorious run in the ODI World Cup forced the Board to have a change of heart. The powers-that-be brought back captain Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli into the T20 fold against Afghanistan.

That India were taking a detour from their earlier approach and falling back on the old guns was evident. On Tuesday the Ajit Agarkar-led selection committee picked nine of the 15 players from the 2022 campaign for the forthcoming edition in the US and the West Indies.

Slow batting by the top-order in the 2022 semi-final was largely held responsible for their loss. Two of the top-3 from that playing XI will still make it this time following their exploits in the ODI campaign at home.

Rishabh Pant will make a return to the squad following his horrific car accident in December 2022 while Shivam Dube and Sanju Samson have made their maiden entry into a World Cup side.

Yuzvendra Chahal, who didn’t get to play a match in the 2022 edition in Australia, returns on the back of his IPL form. Left-arm wrist spinner Kuldeep Yadav and left-arm all-rounders Ravindra Jadeja and Axar Patel are the other spin options in the 15-member squad.

Sources told The Telegraph that backing from influential quarters within the Board and outside helped Pandya retain his vice-captaincy despite an awful performance in IPL 2024.

Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj and Arshdeep Singh are the specialist pacers with Pandya and Shivam Dube, who hasn’t bowled in the IPL, as back-up options. The sluggish surfaces in the West Indies have prompted the think-tank to include four spinners. Dube is the lone power-hitter-cum-finisher in the squad in the absence of Rinku Singh.

Samson has forced open the door this time after losing out to Dinesh Karthik in 2022. His glowing strokeplay, maturity and finesse in pulling off chases for Rajasthan Royals influenced the Agarkar-led panel. So much so that the think-tank’s favourite KL Rahul couldn’t make it despite displaying a sense of purpose.

The squad includes five lefthanders but only two could make the playing XI to provide the perfect balance. If Dube doesn’t find a place, Jaiswal would be the lone lefthander in the top-5.

The top-order still looks shaky. The captain hasn’t been consistent in the IPL and there are serious issues with Kohli’s strike-rate in the middle overs and when batting first.

While some within the Board had been sceptical about his inclusion till a month back, Kohli’s golden run with the bat has put a stop to such discussions.

Can both Kohli and Rohit show the intent to end India’s ICC trophy drought? Therein lies the key to India’s chances.