All-rounder Ravindra Jadeja's exclusion from India's ODI squad for the Sri Lanka tour sparked debate, prompting clarifications from newly-appointed head coach Gautam Gambhir and chief selector Ajit Agarkar. Before departing for Sri Lanka, newly-appointed head coach Gambhir and Agarkar explained that Jadeja hasn’t been dropped but there is a valid reason behind his exclusion.
They emphasised that Jadeja has not dropped but rested strategically ahead of a demanding schedule of 10 Test matches. Gambhir highlighted the importance of Jadeja in these upcoming Test fixtures and expressed confidence in India's performance. Agarkar underlined that it wouldn't have made sense to include Jadeja for the short Sri Lanka series.
“After the Sri Lanka tour, we’ve got a long break, and then we have 10 Test matches. That’s what the challenge is all about. Hopefully, we can do well in these 10 test matches. Jadeja is important for those 10 Test matches. Looking forward to those 10 matches” said Gambhir.
“It would've been pointless to take him and Axar for this short series. Either of them wouldn't have played all three games. There is a big Test season coming up, and he is set to feature in a lot of games. He hasn't been dropped; he is very important,” clarified Agarkar.
"We should have clarified that after selection that 'No he [Jadeja] has not been dropped'. He's very much in the scheme of things" added the 46-year-old.
Jadeja, who was a part of the World Cup 2024-winning team, retired from the T20I format alongside Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli. With his T20I retirement, he was expected to focus on the other two formats. His omission was assumed to be the end of the road for the 35-year-old in ODIs, but the clarifications in the press conference put an end to all speculations.
Upcoming Test series for India
Jadeja will be seen back in action in the two-Test series against Bangladesh at home followed by three-Test series against New Zealand. Then, India will tour Australia for Border-Gavaskar Trophy. In overseas conditions, Jadeja is often picked over Ravichandran Ashwin.
The team management has taken the decision considering injuries have taken a toll on the veteran all-rounder in recent years. Also, Gambhir and the selectors gave Axar Patel a run in ODIs following his success in T20Is.
India’s squad for the ODI series
Rohit Sharma (C), Shubman Gill (VC), Virat Kohli, KL Rahul (WK), Rishabh Pant (WK), Shreyas Iyer, Shivam Dube, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammed Siraj, Washington Sundar, Arshdeep Singh, Riyan Parag, Axar Patel, Khaleel Ahmed, and Harshit Rana.
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