Kris Srikkanth, the former Indian cricketer and chairman of selectors blasted commentator Sanjay Manjrekar for questioning KL Rahul’s inclusion in the Test squad by saying Sanjay Manjrekar cannot ‘think beyond Bombay’.
Sanjay Manjrekar said it was a bad precedent to recall opener KL Rahul to the Test side based on his IPL form, where he is currently the highest run-scorer with over 500 runs.
Sanjoy Manjrekar Doesn’t Have Any Other Job: Kris Srikkanth Disagrees With His Comments
Kris Srikkanth, chairman of selectors when India won the World Cup 2011 after a hiatus of 28 years, disagreed with Sanjay Manjrekar calling his views ‘rubbish’.
“Leave Sanjay Manjrekar alone, he doesn’t have any other job,” Srikkanth said in his YouTube channel Cheeky Cheeka.
“Questioning KL Rahul’s selection in Tests? He has played well in Tests. I won’t agree at all. Just because Sanjay wants to question something, I don’t think I’ll agree. You shouldn’t question something just to create a controversy. KL Rahul has done brilliantly in all formats. Go through his Test record.”
“What Sanjay Manjrekar is talking is all rubbish. I’ll not agree.”
Sanjay Manjrekar had questioned KL Rahul’s selection in whites, pointing to his poor run of form in Test cricket. KL Rahul has not hit a Test half-century in last 12 innings. Barring a 149 in the dead-rubber fifth Test at The Oval against England in 2018, KL Rahul has had a poor run in the format since the start of the South Africa tour in January 2018. Since then, he has averaged a mere 22.23 in 27 Test innings.
Kris Srikkanth: Inconsistent KL Rahul Scored Ton In Australia
KL Rahul last played Tests in the tour of West Indies last year, following which he was dropped from the format for the home season.
When Anirudha Srikkanth, Kris Srikkanth’s son and host of the show, pointed out that Sanjay Manjrekar had a point in showcasing KL Rahul’s inconsistency, Kris Srikkanth said KL Rahul has a century in Australia and is a good player of fast bowling.
“He might have been inconsistent but the same KL Rahul made his debut in Australia and made a century. He’s a good player of fast bowling. Let’s understand, he’s a very good player of fast bowling,” he said.
“Sanjay Manjrekar cannot think beyond Bombay. That’s the problem. We are talking neutral. For people like Manjrekar, everything is Bombay, Bombay and Bombay. They have to think beyond Bombay.”
Pointing out that Rohit Sharma too was selected in the Test squad as an opener last year based on his white-ball success, Kris Srikkanth responded to a viewer comment saying it’s important to be neutral.
“I’ve seen a lot of people, Harsha Bhogle doesn’t know anything except Bombay. Problem is that they’re not neutral. We are talking about Suryakumar Yadav’s inclusion (in the limited-overs squads), am I talking about DK and Ashwin? We’re not fighting for DK and Ashwin.”
KL Rahul has 2006 runs in 60 innings in 36 Tests with 5 centuries averaging about 35. He debuted in 2014, and his last Test came in 2019.
