'He may feel it is unfair, but...': Mohammad Kaif's verdict on Rinku Singh being dropped for South Africa T20Is

Former India cricketer Mohammad Kaif feels that Rinku Singh's omission from the squad is fair. He pointed out how the team already consists of a lot of batting options including the likes of Sanju Samson and Jitesh Sharma and added that Rinku has simply been dropped to make up a place for Hardik Pandya.

Notably, Pandya had been out of action since September after sustaining a quadriceps injury before the Asia Cup final. The all-rounder is a crucial part of the Men in Blue's T20I set-up and his absence was clearly felt in the series against Australia. However, he is now all set to return in the upcoming T20I assignment against South Africa. With Pandya coming in, Rinku was showed the door at his expense.

Kaif agrees with selectors

Kaif took the side of the selectors and remarked that even though Rinku may feel that him not being selected is unfair, he is the only player who could have been dropped for Pandya as he hasn't made many apperances for India in the format either as of recent.

“There is no one you could have removed with Hardik coming back. Sanju Samson in India during the World Cup will be solid. Jitesh has come in now. Even in the Asia Cup, Rinku did not play all the games. He was not in your XI anyway. The bowlers are doing well. There are many all-rounders. There was only one player who could have made way for Hardik to come in, and that was Rinku. There is no other reason. Rinku may feel it is unfair, but I am with the selectors here. Who else will you drop really?” Kaif said on his YouTube channel.

“Rinku’s time will come. Take it from me, he will be an all-format player for India in the future. You will see him playing all formats after two years," he added.

Pandya's heroics in SMAT

Meanwhile, Pandya made a strong return to competitive cricket and played a superb knock of 77* for Baroda against Punjab in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy. This inning saw the team chase down the target of 223 and emerge victorious by 7 wickets with only five deliveries left to spare.

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India's squad for T20I series against South Africa: Suryakumar Yadav (C), Shubman Gill (VC)*, Abhishek Sharma, Tilak Varma, Hardik Pandya, Shivam Dube, Axar Patel, Jitesh Sharma (WK), Sanju Samson (WK), Jasprit Bumrah, Varun Chakaravarthy, Arshdeep Singh, Kuldeep Yadav, Harshit Rana, Washington Sundar.