England vs India 2018: MSK Prasad Reveals Why Shikhar Dhawan Was Picked for Tour

The All-India Selection Committee chief MSK Prasad has revealed why Shikhar Dhawan was picked for the England tour. Dhawan was dropped for the second and third Test match against South Africa. However, the southpaw opener made an emphatic return when he scored a fine century against Afghanistan. Meanwhile, Shikhar Dhawan struggle in the foreign conditions came back to haunt him on England tour.

Dhawan could only manage 162 runs in the eight innings he played in English conditions at an average of 20.25. In fact, the left-hander was dropped for the second Test match after failing to perform in the first Test.

Dhawan could not deliver in testing England conditions.

Dhawan got off to starts in the remaining three Test matches. However, he was not able to make the most of it, which was the most disappointing part. Dhawan could not make a solitary fifty on the tour as he continued his horrible show in the overseas conditions. Thus, it seems the doors should close for Dhawan as far as the foreign tours are concerned.

Must Read | World Cup 2019 Schedule

MSK Prasad said while to the Times of India, “When we pick the team for an important tour like England, we need to take many factors into consideration, be it experience, combinations, consistency etc. That is how we pick the team”.

Meanwhile, Bhuvneshwar Kumar had to miss the whole Test series against England due to his back injury. Kumar played the ODI decider against England, which aggravated his injury. Thus, team management should not have put the Uttar Pradesh bowler at stake.

However, Prasad says Bhuvneshwar Kumar was perfectly all-right before he travelled to England.

“Bhuvneshwar Kumar was absolutely all right when he travelled to the UK. He played T20s against Ireland and England. He developed a slight niggle during the course of the tour which got aggravated later”.

India had to pay the price as Bhuvneshwar Kumar would have been a handy bowler in the England conditions. Kumar has the ability to swing the ball both ways. Furthermore, he has also added an extra yard of pace to his armoury. However, India’s think tank was not guile in handling Kumar’s injury.