Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy 2019-20: Ashok Dinda gets the boot from Bengal’s T20 squad

Ashok Dinda, the veteran fast bowler, has been left out of the Bengal squad for the upcoming Syed Mushtaq Ali T20 Trophy. The Cricket Association of Bengal (CAB) named a 16-member squad and Dinda is annoyed to the extent that he doesn’t wish to represent the state anymore going ahead, sources said. The selectors are now looking for Bengal’s journey without the speedster.

In the 2019-20 Vijay Hazare Trophy, the Mednipur-born Dinda could only manage 10 wickets at an economy of 5.52. The team management is now focussing on blooding in young players, keeping any eye on the future. 25-year-old Ravi Kant Singh, who also played for India U19, has been added to the squad. Sayan Ghosh and Ayan Bhattacharjee add to Bengal’s fast bowling firepower.

“Ashok Dinda is a legend of Bengal cricket. We salute him for his contribution. But dropping him is a decision taken by the selectors. Lately, he (Dinda) has been coming in and out of the ground while some of his deliveries are not even reaching the ’keeper,” Arun Lal, the coach-cum-mentor of Bengal was quoted as saying in The Telegraph.

Dinda wasn’t effective in the Vijay Hazare Trophy

In the Vijay Hazare Trophy, Ishan Porel and Akash Deep fared alike Dinda in the wickets’ column. But the duo has much better economy rates than Dinda. Lal also put forth how the 35-year-old gave away runs at an alarming rate in the games versus Tamil Nadu and Gujarat.

“He came to the camp only for two-three days and when he was available, he hurt his leg, which was unfortunate… In this year’s Vijay Hazare Trophy, being the strike bowler, he wasn’t as effective in the two key matches versus Gujarat and Tamil Nadu. He leaked runs,” Lal, also a former Indian cricketer, mentioned.

Anustup Majumdar faced the axe as well

Lal highlighted the importance of moving on and reckons that T20 cricket provides the youngsters with a great chance to show their mettle. The 35-year-old Anustup Majumdar has also been left out and it’s a clear message to the other senior members of the team.

“Bengal cricket cannot let go of everything just for a name. If youngsters aren’t given a chance in T20 cricket, where will they be tried out then? The CAB is really serious about promoting youngsters. That’s the reason even someone like Anustup Majumder was left out,” he added.

Abhimanyu Easwaran, who’s in the national selectors’ radar, will lead Bengal in the T20 tournament. Bengal’s first match is versus Assam on Friday, November 8 at the Bandra Kurla Complex in Mumbai.

Here’s the Bengal squad

Abhimanyu Easwaran (captain), Sreevats Goswami, Abhishek Raman, Vivek Singh, Manoj Tiwary, Agniv Pan, Ritwik Roy Chowdhury, Shahbaz Ahmed, Debabrata Das, Arnab Nandi, Writtick Chatterjee, Ishan Porel, Akash Deep, Sayan Ghosh, Ravi Kant Singh, Ayan Bhattacharjee.

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