India’s squad for Afghanistan series has been a talking point in the last couple of days.
India’s squad for Afghanistan series has been a talking point in the last couple of days. The BCCI has recalled Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli after more than a year’s gap in the T20I setup. While the talks were loud about their inclusion, the exclusion of prominent players like Shreyas Iyer, Ishan Kishan, and Ravindra Jadeja has garnered more attention.
No press conference happened during the announcement of the squad for India’s last T20I assignment before the T20 World Cup. It led to plenty of speculations around the unavailability of mentioned players. Rahul Dravid attended a press conference on the first match eve and answered several questions, clearing the rumours.
Ravindra Jadeja and Mohammed Siraj were part of the T20I series in South Africa. However, they were out of the series against Afghanistan. Dravid revealed they were excluded because of a five-match Test series against England next month.
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“Even in this series, people like Bumrah, Jadeja and Siraj have missed out, keeping in mind that there are 5 Test matches against England next. So, you are always playing that juggling act a little bit over the last two years,” stated Dravid.
Shreyas Iyer couldn’t make it to the T20I series, leading to numerous talks around his absence. Rahul Dravid explained why he hasn’t been included in the team. He said that the team has plenty of batters, leading to a snub of Shreyas Iyer.
“Certainly, in Shreyas Iyer’s case, there is absolutely no disciplinary reason for his non-inclusion. It’s just that he missed out. There were a lot of batters in the team. Shreyas missed out. He didn’t play the T20Is in South Africa, if you noticed. There are a lot of batters, and it’s not easy to fit everyone,” exclaimed Dravid.
Reports were suggesting the BCCI has taken disciplinary action against Ishan Kishan. The rumours were that Kishan went to a party in Dubai while on leave, citing mental fatigue, compelling the BCCI to take strict measures. However, Dravid has denied such claims, revealing Ishan Kishan was unavailable for selection.
“No, absolutely not (disciplinary issue). Ishan Kishan was not available for selection. Ishan requested a break, which we agreed on in South Africa. We supported it. He has not yet made himself available. I don’t think he has made himself available as yet. When he is available, he will play domestic cricket and make himself available for selection.”
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