File photo of Rishabh Pant
India’s squad for the T20Is against England did spring a few surprises, with the names of top players like Rishabh Pant, Shubman Gill, and Yashasvi Jaiswal missing. The trio wasn’t given the nod by the selection committee, with some younger players preferred for the 5-match assignment. While it is being said that the three stars were rested after a gruelling 5-match Test series against Australia, former India cricketer Aakash Chopra isn’t happyto see Dhruv Jurel being preferred over Pant for the shortest format side.
Team India picked Sanju Samson and Dhruv Jurel as the two wicket-keepers in the team, with the former a certain pick in the playing XI. Chopra feels Jurel wouldn’t be able to get game-time against England unless the management decides to bench either Nitish Kumar Reddy or Rinku Singh.
“You have picked Dhruv Jurel on pure potential. You cannot play him in the starting XI. There is no room for him. If you want to play him, you have to bench either Rinku Singh or Nitish Kumar Reddy, which will not be right for either of them,” Aakash Chopra said in a video on his YouTube channel.
“You have picked him but not Rishabh Pant. It can’t be that Rishabh Pant is not in your scheme of things. So early in his career, have you taken this call? I am not doing any PR. I think Rishabh Pant is an asset. He is a generational talent,” he stated further.
Chopra urged the BCCI to keep investing in Pant, even in the white-ball formats.
“You should invest in him. If he is not in your scheme of things, maybe he has been given rest. Rishabh Pant is not a sure-start name for the Champions Trophy. Even if picked, he is not guaranteed a spot in the playing XI,” said Chopra.
“You could have picked him. It would be nice if the selectors could give some clarity to Rishabh Pant. When you are going through transition, it is important to keep everyone in the loop and give everyone some clarity,” he added.
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