Delhi : Former Indian cricketer and commentator Sunil Gavaskar has slammed some of the senior Indian players for choosing to skip games for India, while continuing to feature for their respective IPL franchises on a regular basis. Sunil Gavaskar’s comments come after the BCCI announced a much-changed squad for the ODI series against the West Indies in the Caribbean Islands. After the ODI series against England, team India will tour the West Indies to play 3 ODI’s and 5 T20I’s, which will begin on the 22nd of July.
High-profile players including Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, Rishabh Pant, Hardik Pandya and Jasprit Bumrah have been given a break for the ODI series owing to workload management. Gavaskar stressed that playing for the country is mandatory, especially in the shortest format where there are just 20 overs in an innings.
Virat Kohli has been accused of taking too many offs
“See I do not agree with players resting (during India matches). Not at all. You are playing for India. You don’t take rest during the IPL but rest while playing for India. I don’t agree with it. You will have to play for India. Don’t talk about rest. There are only 20 overs in an innings in T20. This does not take any toll on your body. In Test matches, the mind and the body take a toll, but in T20 cricket, there is not much of a problem (in playing),” Gavaskar said on Sports Tak.
It has been widely reported that Virat Kohli has been rested for the 5-match T20I series against the West Indies as well. The decision to rest Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli has certainly not gone down well with fans and experts, considering the form of the two Indian batsmen.
Rohit missed the one-off test against England due to COVID-19, while Virat was rested for the first T20I. Rohit had a lean series with the bat, scoring 24, 31 and 11 in 3 matches, while Virat Kohli’s terrible form continued with scores of 1 and 11.
Players are more interested in IPL rather than International Matches for India
As Gavaskar said, the two premier Indian batsmen did not miss a single IPL game, with Rohit playing all 14 games for MI, while Virat played all 16 games for RCB. A damning stat that is doing the rounds is if Virat, Rohit and Bumrah take the field in ODI’s against England, they will play a one-day match together for the first time in 2 years.
The Indian commentator added that the BCCI should look into the ‘rest and rotation policy’, which has become very commonplace in Indian cricket over the last couple of years. He stated that Indian cricketers are given huge contracts by the board already and players’ contracts must be demoted if they miss a certain number of games.
“I honestly feel that the BCCI needs to look into this concept of rest. All the Grade A cricketers have received very good contracts. They receive payment for every match. Tell me if there is any company whose CEO, or MDs get so much time off? I feel that if Indian cricket is to become more professional, a line needs to be drawn. If you want to be rested, you need to reduce your guarantees. Then you take rest because you don’t want to play. But how can anyone say that I don’t want to play for the Indian team? Which is why I do not agree with the concept,” Gavaskar added.
Gavaskar backs Kohli to come good in England ODI’s
Sunil Gavaskar backed the out-of-form Virat Kohli to come good against England in the ODI series. Kohli, who is in desperate need of some runs to his name, scored just 1 and 11 in the T20I series. The former Indian cricketer said that the ODI format will give Virat Kohli a chance to spend some time at the crease, unlike the fast-paced nature of the T20 format.
When asked whether the ODI series came at the right time for Kohli, the 73-year old said: “Yes, the ODI series has come at the right time for him. He can get a few overs to get set, and understand the conditions and whether there’s swing in the air or bounce in the pitch. So I think this is a great format for Kohli.”
The 73-year old added that the Asia Cup in August will be a good indicator of who will board the plane to Australia for the T20 World Cup in October. He said that after calls were made to drop Virat Kohli from the T20I squad.
“I still feel there are about two more months before you have to announce your T20 World Cup squad. There are good teams who will play in Asia Cup and you can decide your team based on the performance then. No need to jump the gun at the moment.”
