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ToggleSunil Gavaskar was not surprised by Hanuma Vihari’s exclusion from India’s squad for the home Test series against New Zealand unlike most in the cricket fraternity. The former captain turned commentator argued on Saturday that since Hanuma Vihari didn’t feature in IPL 2021, he remained “out of sight and out of mind” of the national selectors.
Hanuma Vihari heroically helped India draw the Sydney Test in his last international appearance. He was the designated backup batter in the last couple of Test series, though didn’t get any game time.
Sunil Gavaskar Wasn’t Surprised With Hanuma Vihari’s Axe As He Hasn’t Played Much In The Last 3-4 Months
His snub caused a public furor because it was coincident with the inclusion of players like Shreyas Iyer and Jayant Yadav, who are talented but haven’t played much red-ball cricket in years.
Weighing on the issue while speaking to Sports Today, Sunil Gavaskar said: “I really was not surprised to be honest because he hasn’t played any cricket in the interim. He hasn’t played in the IPL so hasn’t had any cricket under his belt in the last three or four months. On the other hand, the others who have been selected have had some cricket, not necessarily Test cricket, so maybe that’s the reason why they came into the picture.
“Also, a lot of times we have seen over the years that the performances in the IPL have invariably been the ones that nudge the selection committee so that seems to have happened. Hanuma Vihari hasn’t played a single IPL game so out of sight, out of mind, ” Sunil Gavaskar said.
Hanuma Vihari hasn’t played in the IPL since 2019 when he represented the Delhi Capitals in two games. He has featured in 24 IPL games overall, scoring 284 runs at an average of 14.20. The 28-year-old went unsold in the 2020 auction. To make matters more intriguing, hours after the uproar over Hanuma Vihari’s exclusion, the BCCI made him a late entrant of the India ‘A’ squad for a tour of South Africa.
Jayant Yadav, who returned to the team after 4 years, played his last Test against Australia in 2017 while newcomers Shreyas Iyer and Prasidh Krishna got a place in the Indian Test team. Jayant Yadav made his Test debut against England in Vizag in 2016. So far he has taken 11 wickets in 4 Tests. He picked 9 wickets in 3 Tests against England and 2 scalps in a solitary Test against Australia way back in 2017.
The India ‘A’ team, which also includes the likes of Prithvi Shaw and Rahul Chahar, will compete with South Africa ‘A’ in three four-day matches from November 23 to December 9 in Bloemfontein.
Sunil Gavaskar: India A Callup A Big Advantage For Hanuma Vihari
Sunil Gavaskar called the India ‘A’ callup a “big advantage” for Hanuma Vihari, saying scoring runs in South African conditions would keep the Andhra batter ready for an international comeback when India plays the Proteas in a Test series in December. Hanuma Vihari has scored 624 runs in 12 Tests averaging 32.84.
Sunil Gavaskar said: “I think if he’s playing and scoring in the ‘A’ team, that’s very good. He’ll be playing in the same conditions, will get some match practice under his belt. He’ll get a feel of the conditions, the pitch conditions, and everything. And therefore he’ll be absolutely ready in case he’s called for the Test team. So that’s a big advantage for him going to South Africa with the ‘A’ team.”
The India-New Zealand Tests will commence on November 25 and the South African tour will begin on December 17.
India’s squad for NZ Tests:
Ajinkya Rahane (captain for 1st Test), KL Rahul, Mayank Agarwal, Cheteshwar Pujara (vice-captain), Shubman Gill, Shreyas Iyer, Wriddhiman Saha (wicket-keeper), KS Bharat (wicket-keeper), Ravindra Jadeja, Ravichandran Ashwin, Axar Patel, Jayant Yadav, Ishant Sharma, Umesh Yadav, Mohammad Siraj, Prasidh Krishna
** Virat Kohli (captain for 2nd Test, won’t play 1st Test)
India ‘A’ squad for South Africa tour:
Priyank Panchal (Captain), Prithvi Shaw, Abhimanyu Easwaran, Devdutt Padikkal, Sarfaraz Khan, Baba Aparajith, Upendra Yadav (wicket-keeper), K Gowtham, Rahul Chahar, Saurabh Kumar, Navdeep Saini, Umran Malik, Ishan Porel, Arzan Nagwaswalla, Hanuma Vihari