Yusuf Pathan not included in the Baroda squad for the Syed Mushtaq Ali knockouts

The Syed Mushtaq Ali T20 tournament is all set to progress to the knockout stage – Super League. The Baroda team led by Deepak Hooda advanced further as table toppers and the Baroda Cricket Association (BCA) today announced the squad for the last part of the tournament. However, the exclusion of seasoned Yusuf Pathan raised many eyebrows.

Though he was recently banned by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) for failing a dope test, his ban ended on the 14th of January. Thus he was available for selection, moreover, the last time he wore a Baroda jersey, the big man slammed twin tons in the Ranji Trophy game to become only the second player in the history of their cricket to do so.

The all-rounder has been widely regarded as one of the most valuable players in the shortest format of the game. This being a T20 tournament, Yusuf’s experience would’ve been just what the team sought to end up winning the title they just missed a couple of seasons ago.

Given his T20 exploits at the international level as well as in the IPL, Yusuf’s prowess as a match winner in the shortest format of the game are widely acknowledged. The all-rounder has been part of the Kolkata Knight Riders squad for seven years. It’s highly likely that the franchise will want to retain him using the RTM card in the IPL 2018 auction.

Irfan seeks NOC

However, the way he is being treated by the BCA has been dealing with the entire matter is tough to digest. Recently his brother and former Baroda captain, Irfan Pathan was left out of the Ranji team after two games into the tournament. He was excluded despite being announced the skipper at the start. The concerning issue is the lack of substantial and concrete clarifications and reasoning for this act.

Understanding that the association no longer seeks his services Pathan recently applied for a NOC from BCA so that he could represent other states that are more than willing to sign him up for the next domestic season.