Why Did Shafali Verma Not Find A Place In The WC Squad? 'She Is In The System...'
Chief selector Neetu David has confirmed that Shafali Verma remains in the system despite missing out on the ODI World Cup squad.
Indian women's chief selector Neetu David has said that Shafali Verma is within the system and not out of it and the selection committee has got its eyes on her, as the 21-year-old missed out on a spot in the 15-member squad for the upcoming Women's ODI World Cup, which will be played at home.
Since her return to the team during the series against England, Shafali has made 3, 47, 31 and 75 against the English team, before floundering against Australia A with scores of 3, 3 and 41.
Notably, Shafali wasn't a part of the standby list as well, which consisted of middle-order batter Tejal Hasabnis, Prema Rawat, Priya Mishra, Uma Chetry, Minnu Mani and Sayali Satghare.
'Shafali played the Australia A series. She is in the system, not like she is not. We have got our eyes on her. Hope she plays a lot more and garners experience, it will help serve India in the 50-overs format," David said while speaking to the media as she and skipper Harmanpreet Kaur announced the team for the World Cup and the upcoming Australia series.
Pratika Rawal, who has done well in 14 ODIs, was chosen ahead of Shafali.
Shafali was part of the Indian squad that played a three-match ODI series against New Zealand last year and scored 56 runs in three matches at a dismal average of 18.66, which led to her ouster from the Indian ODI team.
Replacing her, Pratika has scored 703 runs in 14 ODIs at a stunning average of 54 with one hundred to her name.
Shafali's knack for tearing apart attacks in the powerplay makes her a priceless asset, despite the inconsistency that comes with her high-risk style. But with a World Cup in sight and the best opportunity to win it at home, the selectors presumably went for consistency and intelligent run-scoring.
In 29 ODIs, Shafali has scored 644 runs at an average of 23 and a strike rate of 83.2.
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