'How can one explain omission of Ruturaj and Sarfaraz?' - Dilip Vengsarkar not happy with India's Test squad for Sri Lanka series

The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI)  named India’s Test squad for the upcoming two-match home series against Sri Lanka on February 19. Rohit Sharma has been appointed as the new red-ball captain with pace spearhead Jasprit Bumrah as his deputy. With the senior players Ajinkya Rahane and Cheteshwar Pujara dropped, Shreyas Iyer and Hanuma Vihari would be expected to bolster the Indian team’s middle-order along with wicketkeeper-batter Rishabh Pant.

Meanwhile, former Indian chief selector Dilip Vengsarkar is not satisfied with the Test team selection and according to him, two promising batters, Ruturaj Gaikwad and Sarfaraz Khan, should have rightfully been given an opportunity in the two-match series starting March 4. Giving further clarification on the same, the cricketer-turned selector mentioned that the batters are two of the most prolific scorers in the domestic circuit.

Let every player earn his place in the team, says Dilip Vengsarkar

“It seems there isn’t application of mind when the team is selected. How can one explain the omission of Ruturaj and Sarfaraz, who are two of the most prolific scorers in the domestic circuit? Looking at the team, a couple of players, though talented, haven’t done much to merit their place in the squad.

“Let every player earn his place in the team and not take it for granted. Ruturaj and Sarfaraz deserve a place. The selectors are damaging their morale by not selecting them for India”, said Vengsarkar while speaking to the Times of India.

Sarfaraz Khan scored a blistering 275 during Mumbai’s Ranji Trophy 2022 opener against Saurashtra at Ahmedabad recently. Ruturaj Gaikwad, who is currently in the Indian squad for the T20I series against the West Indies has amassed 1349 runs in first-class cricket from 21 matches averaging 38.54 and a strike rate of 50.84 including four centuries, and also has 3284 List-A runs from 64 appearances averaging 54.73 and a strike rate of 100.09.

The series opener will be played at the PCA Stadium in Mohali whereas the second and final game would be contested at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru from March 12. The second Test match is all set to be a pink-ball affair that would be played under lights.