Ashish Ranjan
The selection committee of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) announced the squads for the July multi-format series against West Indies. Former cricketer Sunil Gavaskar criticized the selection committee for excluding the Test specialist Cheteshwar Pujara from the upcoming tour.
Gavaskar cited the weak performances of the Indian team’s batters following their recent loss to Australia in the ICC World Test Championship (WTC) 2021-23 final. The former cricketer was of the opinion that Pujara was being made the’scapegoat’ for team India’s batting failings in the WTC final, despite the fact that there were others in the team’s batting lineup who did not rise to the occasion.
“It is evident that only one man has been singled out, while others have also failed. In my opinion, the batting faltered. Except for Ajinkya Rahane, who scored 89 and 46 runs in both innings, nobody else really scored runs. Why is Cheteshwar Pujara then dropped? Why is he being held accountable for our failings at bat? He has been a faithful servant of Indian cricket. Because he does not have millions of admirers on any platform, who would protest if he were dropped?” Gavaskar revealed to India Today.
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“You dumped him, right? That is beyond comprehension. What are the criteria for dismissing him while retaining those who failed? He has participated in county cricket. He is familiar with red-ball cricket because he has played it extensively. People are able to participate until age 40 or 39. There is nothing amiss because everyone is physically fit. Age should not be a factor as long as you are accumulating runs and taking wickets, he continued.
Pujara struggled with the bat against Australia in the WTC Final. When discussing Pujara’s exploits in the WTC final, the right-hander could only score 14 and 27 runs in the lone Test at The Oval in London. Meanwhile, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Ruturaj Gaikwad, and Mukesh Kumar have been selected for the upcoming tour with the Test squad.
