Former India captain Sunil Gavaskar has slammed the Indian selection committee’s decision to not include the in-form Ajinkya Rahane in the squad for the upcoming three-match T20I series against Australia.
The third choice opener in the team, Rahane has grabbed his opportunities with both the hands in recent times. After warming the bench for the entire Champions Trophy, he got a chance to open the inning in West Indies when Rohit Sharma was on rest, and he made it count by finishing the series as its highest run-scorer. He was once again left out of the playing eleven after Rohit Sharma returned to the team during the Sri Lanka series.
However, Shikhar Dhawan’s departure from the team due to family reasons gave him a much-needed opportunity, and he fully cashed on it, scoring three consecutive century stands with Rohit in the recently-concluded five-match ODI series against Australia.
But despite his impressive performances, he was overlooked for the T20I series, much to the frustration of Gavaskar who feels including KL Rahul in the team instead of the Mumbai star is absurd.
“Why do you say it is understandable? Man who gets four consecutive fifties, why he is not in the team? KL Rahul is a fine player, but KL Rahul didn’t play a single game in the five One-Day games. So why is he in the team and Rahane who has got four half-centuries, not in the team. So don’t say it’s understandable,” Gavaskar told NDTV when asked whether Rahane making way for Dhawan is understandable/
“Some reason has to be given by the selection committee. A man who does not find a place in the team for the last five or six games for India still finds a place in T20 when the man who has played after the fourth One-Day International in Sri Lanka and has scored four half-centuries hasn’t,” he added.
The legendary batsman further praised the selectors for preferring form over age and recall 38-year old Ashish Nehra in the team.
“That’s fantastic that the selection committee has said age is not a factor. If a player is good, he is going to be picked, and Ashish Nehra has shown in the IPL that he is such a good death bowler. He is still picking wickets, he is still stopping runs, and that’s I think is a great sign. We in India are so obsessed with youth that I am surprised we don’t find six years seven years old in the Indian team,” said Gavaskar.
“The moment somebody passes 30-32, everybody is looking to have him dropped from the team. So I am really happy with that selection because Ashish Nehra can contribute with the ball,” he added.
The three-match T20I series will start from October 7 in Ranchi.