The BCCI announced their 18-member squad for the upcoming 5-match T20I series against South Africa. The Indian team will host the Proteas as they start their preparation for the T20 World Cup. Umran Malik and Arshdeep Singh have got maiden call-ups in the national team while Kuldeep Yadav and Dinesh Karthik have made a comeback. Shikhar Dhawan is not a part of the squad even after a great show in the IPL. As per the reports, Rahul Dravid tells Shikhar Dhawan why he was not selected for the team.
Rahul Dravid tells Shikhar Dhawan the reason behind his omission
The ongoing edition of the IPL has brought up quite a few emerging players who are exciting options and may well be tried in the national team in the days to come. The influx of the young players in all the departments is good news for Indian cricket, however, it has now become one of the reasons why seasoned campaigners may be overlooked to give opportunities to the young talent in the shortest format. Dhawan’s omission is a shining example of that and Rahul Dravid tells Shikhar Dhawan the same on a phone call.
According to the reports, the current Indian head coach Rahul Dravid wants to give enough opportunities to the youngsters. Since team India is facing a problem of plenty, Dhawan may not be in the scheme of things in the shortest format. As per a BCCI source, it was not an easy decision for the head coach to make, but he had to make a call for the team. Before the team was announced, Rahul Dravid tells Shikhar Dhawan the reason of his exclusion.
“Shikhar has been a great servant of Indian cricket for over a decade. But in the T20s, you have to give chances to youngsters who have been doing well. Rahul had to make the tough call and we all agreed. Rahul informed Shikhar before the team was announced on Sunday. Of course, we all have respect for Shikhar and that is why he made a call to inform him that, he will not be in T20 plans anymore,” said a senior BCCI official to InsideSport.In website.
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South Africa’s tour of India will begin on 09th June and the players won’t have a lot of time before that as the IPL is ending on 29th May. The Indian team doesn’t have many T20 matches before they enter the T20 World Cup in October, therefore they will try and get the right combination as soon as possible.