Batting Legend Slams Selectors For Preferring KL Rahul Over Ajinkya Rahane

Former India opener Sunil Gavaskar has lashed out at the Indian selectors for not including the in-form Ajinkya Rahane in the squad for the upcoming three-match T20I series against Australia.

The right-handed batman has been in terrific form of late in One-Day Internationals. With Shikhar Dhawan and Rohit Sharma going great guns in the Champions Trophy, Rahane could not get a single match during the tournament.  However, he got a chance to prove himself when Rohit Sharma was rested for the West Indies tour and the former fully capitalised on it, bagging the Man of the Series award for finishing the series as its highest run-scorer.

Not surprisingly, he once again lost his place in the playing eleven after Rohit Sharma returned for the series in Sri Lanka.  However, Shikhar Dhawan’s departure from the team due to family reasons gave him a much-needed opportunity and he grabbed it with both hands, scoring four consecutive centuries in the recently-concluded five-match ODI series against Australia.

But despite his impressive peformances, he was overlooked for the T20I series, much to the frustration of Gavaskar who feels including KL Rahul in the team instead of the Mumbai star is not understandable.

“Why do you say it is understandable? Man who gets four consecutive fifties, why he is not in the team? KL Rahul is a fine player but KL Rahul didn’t play a single game in the five One-Day games. So why is he in the team and Rahane who has got four half-centuries not in the team. So don’t say it’s understandable,” Gavaskar told NDTV when asked whether Rahane making way for Dhawan is understandable.

“Some reason has to be given by the selection committee. A man who does not find a place in the team for the last five or six games for India, still finds a place in T20 when the man who has played after the fourth One-Day International in Sri Lanka and has scored four half-centuries hasn’t,” he added.

The former India captain also praised the selectors for recalling 38-year old Ashish Nehra in the team.

“That’s fantastic that the selection committee has said age is not a factor. If a player is good, he is going to be picked and Ashish Nehra has shown in the IPL that he is such a good death bowler. He is still picking wickets, he is still stopping runs and that’s I think is a great sign. We in India are so obsessed with youth that I am surprised we don’t find 6 years 7 years old in the Indian team,” said Gavaskar.

“The moment somebody passes 30-32, everybody is looking to have him dropped from the team. So I am really happy with that selection because Ashish Nehra can contribute with the ball,” he added.