The BCCI is reportedly unhappy with a number of senior Team India players for skipping bilateral series frequently in order to take rest.
Team India’s squad for the upcoming ODI series against West Indies has surprised many. The BCCI announced the squad on Wednesday for the three-match series later this month.
Several big names have been rested for the series. Skipper Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, Hardik Pandya, Rishabh Pant and Jasprit Bumrah won’t be taking part in the ODI series. A recent report has stated that all the aforementioned players with the exception of Kohli will be a part of the subsequent T20I series against West Indies.
The decision to rest the players have taken many by surprise. Rohit, Kohli and Bumrah were rested last month for the home T20I series against South Africa. Additionally, Rohit missed the recently-concluded Test against Edgbaston after testing positive for Covid-19.
Pandya, on the other hand, returned to competitive cricket after a long injury layoff through this year’s IPL and has only played T20s so far. As far as Pant is concerned, he has been playing non-stop cricket for quite some time now. Unsurprisingly, the pundits and fans are not impressed with the selectors’ decision of resting the players once again.
BCCI unhappy with senior players:
While BCCI and the selectors are facing the heat for resting the big names for the West Indies ODIs, the Times of India has reported that the Indian cricket board is unhappy with the senior players.
The board is miffed with the players for frequently sitting out of series. The news outlet quoted a source as saying that the players’ unavailability makes it tough for the team-management to form a settled team.
The source also made it clear that BCCI is not responsible for the players’ unavailability, stating that the selectors rest them only after they are asked to do so by the trainers and the physios.
“In every selection meeting, the issue of workload management comes up. Players like Rohit, Kohli, Pandya, Bumrah and Shami are always talked about needing rest. All these players have always got the preference to get rest. The trainers and physios send notes to the selectors through the team management that these players need to be given rest,” the source said.
“These players sit out every second series. And all of them have good BCCI contracts. Rohit has barely played for India since he assumed full-time captaincy.
“Pandya just got back to playing for India. Bumrah and Shami too play select matches. And Kohli too has been given rest after each series. And then we realise that there is a struggle to form a settled team. Pant is the only cricketer who has played most for India in the last couple of years,” the source added.
In the last few months, Rohit and Kohli have missed several games for Team India. Since becoming the captain of the team in November last year, Rohit has played two Tests, nine T20Is and three ODIs. On the other hand, Kohli has played six Tests, six ODIs and two T20Is since November.