Cricket World Cup: India player guide

India's 15-man World Cup squad

Virat Kohli

Right-handed batsman, right-arm medium bowler

Few have managed to balance the roles of captain and top-order batsman as proficiently as India skipper Virat Kohli.

The number one batsman in the ICC's One-Day International and Test rankings, Kohli won the World Cup in 2011 before being named player of the tournament in the T20 edition three years later.

Considered among the greatest batsmen of his era, he once described himself as "a brat, arrogant and casual" before superseding MS Dhoni as captain two years ago.

No individual currently playing can better his total of 10,843 ODI runs and he will be at the forefront of the Indian summer.

Rohit Sharma

Right-handed batsman

Accomplished at fluently shifting gears at the crease, India's vice-captain is the only man with multiple double-centuries in ODI cricket, famously scoring a world-record 264 against Sri Lanka in 2014.

The top-order batsman goes against the modern status quo, favouring a slow start with the bat before accelerating his run-rate later into the innings.

Sharma scored 405 runs from 15 innings for Mumbai Indians in this season's IPL and will be crucial in the number two spot.

Shikhar Dhawan

Left-handed batsman

The left-handed batsman played more matches across all three formats (six Tests, 32 ODIs and 22 T20s) than any other player among the international sides at the World Cup between the start of 2018 and when the preliminary squads were announced on April 23.

Dhawan holds the record for the fastest Test century by a debutant and has impressed in the sport's shortest format, firing 521 runs in 16 innings in this year's IPL.

The left-handed batsman is an explosive component towards the top of India's batting order and has scored 5,355 runs in 128 ODIs.

KL Rahul

Right-handed batsman

Only Australia's David Warner (692) scored more runs than KL Rahul (593) in this year's IPL but the Indian batsman has blown hot and cold on the international stage.

The 27-year-old superseded Ahmed Shehzad as the fastest batsman to make centuries in all three formats, requiring a mere 20 innings to do so.

But he has failed to nail down a regular spot in the India first-team and managed just 26 in his one appearance in their most recent ODI series against Australia.

Vijay Shankar

Right-handed batsman, right-arm medium bowler

Shankar's figures leave a lot to be desired but the India contingent breathed a collective sigh of relief when it was revealed the all-rounder had not suffered a fracture in training last week.

Expected to plug the problematic number-four spot in the batting order, the Sunrisers Hyderabad player was selected over Ambati Rayudu in the squad, having made his ODI debut earlier this year.

He made 244 runs in the 2019 IPL campaign and has scored a mere 165 runs in his nine ODI appearances.

MS Dhoni

Wicketkeeper-batsman

Having captained India to World Cup glory in 2011, veteran wicketkeeper-batsman Dhoni knows what it takes to perform on the biggest stage.

The 37-year-old has also led his nation to the Twenty20 World Cup title and was skipper when India held the title of greatest Test side for 18 months from late 2009.

With 341 ODIs and 10,500 runs to his name, Dhoni is a vitally experienced cog in the Indian set-up who can aid captain Kohli and boost totals from lower down the order, as shown by his 416 runs in the recent IPL campaign.

MS Dhoni is a key component of the India teamCredit: Jordan Mansfield

Kedar Jadhav

Right-handed batsman, off-spin bowler

A useful utility player, all-rounder Jadhav has scored 1174 runs and taken 27 wickets in his 59 ODI appearances for India.

The veteran will be remembered by tournament hosts and favourites England, against whom he struck a 77-ball 120 at the start of their series back in January 2017.

Declared fit and ready for the World Cup after sustaining a shoulder injury in the IPL, in which he scored 162 runs in 2019, the 34-year-old brings experience and versatility into the equation for India.

Dinesh Karthik

Wicketkeeper-batsman

India's subsidiary wicketkeeper made his debut 15 years ago before MS Dhoni came on to the international scene but his inclusion in the squad has sparked controversy.

Karthik was included at the expense of 21-year-old starlet Rishabh Pant and will deputise behind the stumps should Dhoni not feature.

He registered 244 runs in the IPL for Sunrisers Hyderabad this year and guided India to the 2018 Nidahas Trophy with an unbeaten 29 in the final, scoring six off the final ball of the match.

Yuzvendra Chahal

Right-handed batsman, right-arm leg-spin bowler

Among the favourites to finish the World Cup's leading wicket-takers this summer, leg-spinner Chahal has taken 72 wickets from 41 ODIs, with his best figures in the format of 6-42 coming against Australia in January this year.

The 28-year-old has since played only one match in India's recent ODI series loss to Australia and there are fears he could struggle to make an impact on England's flat decks.

But Chahal remains one of the best bowlers to opt for against middle-order big-hitters and could be key to an India success in his maiden World Cup.

Kuldeep Yadav

Left-handed batsman, leg-spin bowler

Along with Chahal, 24-year-old Yadav completes one of the fiercest spin duos in world cricket, sitting seventh in the ICC ODI bowling rankings, with opener Jasprit Bumrah (first) the only teammate above him.

There have been concerns over the leg-spinner's recent form, most notably in the IPL, where he was benched midway through the campaign, taking four wickets in nine matches at an economy rate of 8.66.

But, with 87 wickets in 44 ODIs to date, he remains his side's first-choice spinner and can inflict the bulk of the mid-innings damage on India's opposition.

Kuldeep Yadav is one of the world's most prolific spin bowlersCredit: Robert Cianflone

Bhuvneshwar Kumar

Right-handed batsman, right-arm medium bowler

An economy rate of 2.25 in a high-octane debut against bitter rivals Pakistan suggested there was something special about India bowler Kumar.

The 29-year-old went on to take a wicket with the first ball of his ODI career and has a further 117 dismissals in 105 matches in the format.

A two-time winner of the purple cap for the leading wicket-taker in the IPL, Kumar's pedigree is well-known and he will be hoping to make amends for an injury-plagued 2015 World Cup campaign.

Jasprit Bumrah

Right-handed batsman, right-arm fast-medium bowler

Anyone doubting the temperament or ability of the number one ODI bowler in the world need only take a look at Bumrah's performance in the Indian Premier League final earlier this year.

With figures of 2-14, the 25-year-old was named player of the match as Mumbai Indians defeated Chennai Super Kings, taking him to 19 wickets for the IPL season.

His unorthodox action and piercing yorkers have seen him take 85 wickets in 45 ODIs. The paceman thrived during last summer's Test series with England, taking 5-85 at Trent Bridge, and his superb swing can spearhead India's fearsome bowling attack.

Hardik Pandya

Right-handed batsman, right-arm medium-fast

India have one of the tournament's most competent top three, a varied bowling unit and the middle-order pyrotechnics of Dhoni. And now they have one of the best all-rounders in world cricket in big-hitter Pandya.

With a mesmerising strike rate of 191.42 with the bat, the 25-year-old was also a crucial component of the Mumbai Indians title-winning side this season.

His scintillating 34-ball score of 91 against Kolkata Knight Riders demonstrated his ability to assume the role of India's key run accelerator and he is handy with the ball as well, taking 44 wickets in 45 ODI appearances.

Ravindra Jadeja

Left-handed batsman, off-spin bowler

Once at the forefront of India's spin attack, Jadeja's inclusion in the World Cup squad has come under significant scrutiny but a composed performance in India's warm-up match with New Zealand demonstrated the value he adds to the set-up.

Following a top and middle-order collapse, Jadeja scored a 50-ball 54 in the number eight spot to strengthen his bid for a place in the starting 11 at this summer's tournament.

A decade's worth of international experience, this will be the 30-year-old's second World Cup and he may contribute more to it than the cynics predict.

Mohammed Shami

Right-handed batsman, right-arm fast-medium bowler

Paceman Shami will have fond memories of India's last World Cup campaign after he finished the 2015 edition with 17 wickets to help his nation achieve a semi-final berth.

Game time was hard to come by in the aftermath of the tournament but his recent form, coupled with swing bowling which will be well-suited to English conditions, saw him make the final squad.

Shami took 19 wickets in his recent IPL campaign with Kings XI Punjab.

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