The Indian squad’s selection for the Test series against New Zealand was largely predictable. No selection panel will want to risk changing a squad that has delivered a series win in West Indies, despite it being an ordinary side. But this was the opportunity for the Indian selectors to drive home a point for the Test squad in particular.
This is going to be a long season with Test cricket being the focus, but the selectors have missed a chance to be strong. With the Sandeep Patil-led selection panel on its last legs, no one really wanted to take a strong step.
More Visibility in Blue Results in Test Spot?
Another weak decision from the selection panel now allows limited-overs superstars Shikhar Dhawan and Rohit Sharma an easy passage across India for the Test series against New Zealand.
The ODI and T20I opening pair have faced long periods of struggle in whites and should ideally have been left out of the squad but now as things stand, both Dhawan and Rohit are managing to earn benefits of being regulars in blue for India. With the team almost always playing more in coloured clothing, the performances by Dhawan and Rohit get highlighted that much more.
The selectors are committing a layman’s mistake of confusing form with formats. This is a huge advantage for the likes of Dhawan and Rohit.
Contrast this is with the work put in by the likes of Murali Vijay and Cheteshwar Pujara, who are the typical Test specialists. Vijay and Pujara are forever on notice, because each match they play for India takes place after a length of time. This is just as grossly unfair on the duo, as it is easy for Dhawan and Rohit to retain their slots without having returns to show.
With Lokesh Rahul stepping upto the plate, it is going to be really difficult for Dhawan to open again in the near future for India in Test matches. Similarly, with skipper Virat Kohli preferring a five-man attack, Rohit may well be on the bench for over a month.
No Place For Next Gen?
There are also other claimants for the slots in the Test match format like Shreyas Iyer, Manish Pandey and Karun Nair who will therefore have to wait that much longer to get a look-in. The new set of selectors should therefore clearly spell out their players for the various formats.
This will help all the players concerned, because there will be clarity of thought. Dhawan and Rohit have been given a long enough rope in the purest form of cricket. Clearly, both have not responded with runs and it is now time to look at them purely as shorter format players.
Take England for example, Alex Hales was given a long run as a Test match opener. But now the failure in that format does not affect his limited-over spots. India needs to make that clear to both Dhawan and Rohit. A similar message needs to go out to Vijay and Pujara too, which will help unshackle them.
Ideally for a home series you really do not need more than a 12-man squad. The other three players are rendered superfluous and are just usually sitting around doing nothing. With a wind of change blowing everywhere, Indian cricket could have taken a sensible step of choosing just 12. Reserve players can always be pulled in from the local association. But then we like to please everyone, so we will continue sometime longer with this system.
Why Give Hope to Gambhir, Yuvraj?
The Duleep Trophy selection was a prime example of handing out false hopes to fading stars. Gautam Gambhir, Suresh Raina, Yuvraj Singh and Harbhajan Singh were slotted in various squads. Why? As a major chunk of the second string was away in Australia with the India A squad.
Of the quartet, only Gambhir and Harbhajan had a realistic chance of making a return to the Test squad. Even of this pair, only Gambhir played the tournament and had something to show for it. For a senior like Gambhir to go through this rigmarole yet again is a tough ask, but he has the runs to show for it now. It may be a tall order for him to make a return at this stage. But then why raise false hopes?
This is where clear communication needs to come into play. If Gambhir is told that he is not going to be considered, he may as well look at the other options available. When in England and Australia a player goes out of favour, he is clearly told whether he can come back or not. If Gambhir is never going to be considered again, why pick him or the others for a major domestic tournament like Duleep Trophy? This undermines both the players and the stature of the tournament.
(At The Quint, we are answerable only to our audience. Play an active role in shaping our journalism by becoming a member. Because the truth is worth it.)