Sanjay Manjrekar takes a dig at MSK Prasad with 'three dimensional' jibe

MSK Prasad is at the receiving end ever since the World Cup has been announced.

Published - 17 Apr 2019, 11:31 IST | Updated - 17 Apr 2019, 11:31 IST

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‘Three dimensional’ has become the buzzword in Indian cricket fraternity ever since the World Cup squad was announced on Monday (April 15). The MSK Prasad-led selection panel did not spring too many surprises but raised quite a number of eyebrows by omitting Ambati Rayudu from the team. Instead of Rayudu, the selectors went for in-form all-rounder Vijay Shankar. Rayudu was widely seen as India’s No. 4 for the World Cup after his impressive displays since being recalled last year.

The middle-order batsman had returned to the team during the Asia Cup after a two-year hiatus. Rayudu hit the ground running with some impressive performances. However, the failure to do well in the home series against Australia as well as in the ongoing IPL probably cost him a spot in the World Cup squad. On the other hand, Shankar fully capitalised on the chances. He was included in the ODI team for the Australia tour earlier this year when KL Rahul and Hardik Pandya were suspended.

And the all-rounder grabbed the opportunities with both the hands. He proved his worth with both bat and ball to stake a claim for a World Cup spot and the selectors duly rewarded him. However, the decision has been attracting widespread criticism with many saying that dropping Rayudu was not fair. MSK Prasad is facing the heat not only for the decision but also his choice of words. The chief selector said that Shankar was preferred ahead of Rayudu because of being three-dimensional.

“After the Champions Trophy [in 2017], we have tried quite a few middle-order batsmen, which also includes Dinesh Karthik at that order, and we also tried Shreyas Iyer and Manish Pandey,” Prasad had said. “We did give a few more chances to Rayudu but what Vijay Shankar offers is three dimensions.”

And now former India batsman Sanjay Manjrekar has taken a shot at MSK Prasad for his comments. Following last nights’ game between Kings XI Punjab and Rajasthan Royals, Manjrekar took to Twitter to point out Ravi Ashwin’s all-round show while writing, “Great game for Ashwin tonight…as batsman, bowler & captain. He was ‘three dimensional’.”

Great game for Ashwin tonight…as batsman, bowler & captain. He was ‘three dimensional’. 😉#KXIPvRR
— Sanjay Manjrekar (@sanjaymanjrekar) April 16, 2019

Rayudu takes a dig at Prasad too

Before Sanjay Manjrekar, Ambati Rayudu himself had taken a sly dig at Prasad. The right-handed batsman had sarcastically tweeted that he ordered ‘a new set of 3d glasses to watch the World Cup‘. It was followed by a winking and a smiling emoji.