Bishan Singh Bedi not pleased with Harbhajan, Yuvraj 'bunking' Ranji Trophy

Former Indian cricketer Bishan Singh Bedi is absolutely unimpressed with premier Indian cricketers skipping the ongoing edition of the Ranji Trophy. The first round of the premier domestic competition kick started on October 6 and it has been quite an entertainment thus far. The tournament has already seen a triple ton being scored and that is a good sign for the Indian cricket.

Several international cricketers of the Indian team have opted to be a part of their respective domestic sides in Ranji Trophy this year. This includes the likes of Ravichandran Ashwin who is keen to make a comeback to the national side in all formats. Among others, Cheteshwar Pujara, Wriddhiman Saha, and Ishant Sharma are also engaged in the tournament. However, the names of Harbhajan Singh and Yuvraj Singh missed out in the first round.

Apparently, the two out of favor India candidates opted not to feature in the first round of the tournament for team Punjab. Speaking about this, as per the quotes in Indian Express, Bishan Singh Bedi had harsh criticism for them. At the same time, he had his words of praise for Pujara and Ashwin, for participating in the County Championships and in the Ranji Trophy this year to improve their skills a lot more.

“First-class cricket is very important and honestly I don’t like players who bunk it. I have very little time for them. Players missing first-class cricket is a bad omen for Indian cricket. When your international players start bunking domestic cricket is a bad omen for the future,” quoted Bishan Singh Bedi.

“I am glad that they are not missing Ranji Trophy. After making it into the national side, it is important for players to continue in domestic circuit too,” he added.

On Kuldeep Yadav

Despite the senior players giving the tournament a miss, Bishan Singh Bedi looked content with the future of Indian cricket. He looked very impressed with Kuldeep Yadav in particular. He expressed that he likes the enthusiasm that the youngster brings on the field.

“Kuldeep’s rise is a signal for a better future for Indian cricket. I like his enthusiasm, his energy level. But we have to be very careful in bracketing him. It is very early to judge him and thus I feel we should let him grow naturally. He is a young player who has got loads of confidence and that is helping him enjoy his game on the field,” he conceded.