India’s squads for the upcoming Test and ODI series against West Indies were announced on Friday (June 23). India will visit West Indies soon for a full-fledged tour that gets underway next month. Both the teams are scheduled to play 2 Tests, 3 ODIs and 5 T20Is against each other.
And the selections have not gone down well with many including former India opener Abhinav Mukund. The former opening batsman took to Twitter to express his displeasure over some of the calls made by the selectors for the upcoming tour.
Among notable calls, the selectors gave maiden call-ups to Ruturaj Gaikwad and Yashasvi Jaiswal for the Test side while once again ignoring Sarfaraz Khan and several other players who have been doing well consistently in Ranji Trophy. In another baffling call, Ajinkya Rahane has been reappointed as the Test vice-captain despite making his comeback only this month.
Expressing his shock over the selection calls, Mukund took to Twitter to write: “Unable to understand these selections – too many thoughts in my head to compile into a tweet. But what is the incentive for a young player to take pride in playing for his state anymore? Clearly, the franchise route is a faster way to scale the grade.”
Unable to understand these selections- too many thoughts in my head to compile into a tweet. But what is the incentive for a young player to take pride in playing for his state anymore? Clearly the franchise route is a faster way to scale the grade. #INDvsWI
— Abhinav Mukund (@mukundabhinav) June 23, 2023
The selectors have also dropped veteran batsman Cheteshwar Pujara as well as senior fast-bowler Umesh Yadav. Both the players were dropped after struggling in recent times including in the WTC final earlier this month. Many believe they are unlikely to return to the Test team again.
Also Read: Give Them A Break: Sunil Gavaskar Lashes Out At Selection For West Indies Tour