The Ajit Agarkar-led selection committee and the Indian team management have reportedly decided to drop Abhimanyu Easwaran for the upcoming Test. Ruturaj Gaikwad, Rinku Singh, Sarfaraz Khan, Smaran Ravichandran and Yash Rathore are among the names doing the rounds for red-ball cricket.
India under Gautam Gambhir suffered a 0-2 Test series defeat as South Africa dominated both matches to secure their first Test series win in India in 25 years. Notably, this was the second whitewash for the Men in Blue on home soil in just 12 months, raising major concerns regarding the recent decline in red-ball cricket.
India’s Test series defeat to South Africa forces selectors to rethink their approach
India’s Test series defeat to South Africa has forced the selectors to rethink their approach, especially for important roles like the number-three batting position. After years of stability under the leadership of Rahul Dravid and Cheteshwar Pujara, that spot is now open again.
The selectors tried various options which did not work. Karun Nair could not secure a role during the England tour and Sai Sudarshan managed only 27 runs in 11 innings. His technique still needs to be refined, especially on the turning pitches of Asia.
The selectors believe that Sudarshan needs more time with domestic cricket and India A before he can handle the demands of Test matches. Test cricket is not a platform to correct basic mistakes and India have learned this the hard way time and again.
Abhimanyu Easwaran is no longer in India’s Test plans
Speaking on his YouTube channel, Rohit Juglan said that Abhimanyu Easwaran is no longer a contender for the Indian Test team. He said that the selectors had already started moving on from him after the England Lions tour, as Easwaran repeatedly failed to score runs in high-pressure matches.
“Let me also talk about Abhimanyu Easwaran. It has become very difficult for him now. You will not see him coming back into the team because it has become a clear opinion that he has not performed well in big matches,” Juglan said.
“If you look at the recent India A games, the England Lions series or the matches against Australia, there were no runs. So the discussion about them has practically ended,” he said.
Rinku Singh, Ruturaj Gaikwad and Rajat Patidar are among the contenders for Test cricket
Rohit Juglan said that the selectors may give preference to technically strong batsmen who are committed to Test cricket. He said that several in-form players including Rinku Singh, Sarfaraz Khan, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Rajat Patidar, Smaran Ravichandran and Yash Rathore are in discussions to strengthen the red-ball setup.
“The focus now is on better, more elite batsmen who add value to Test cricket. There are plans to bring such players back into the system, and some names top that list – Rinku Singh, Sarfaraz Khan, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Rajat Patidar, Smaran and Yash. These players have been performing consistently well, and there is a lot of buzz about them.”
Also read: BCCI takes important decision on split coaching after Gautam Gambhir’s test failures for India
