3 things Chetan Sharma can do better in his 2nd term as selection panel chairman
The BCCI has re-elected Chetan Sharma as the chairman of the selection committee for the Indian senior men's cricket team. Sharma was elected the chairman of the selection committee for the first time in 2020. The Indian team achieved a lot of success in 2020-21, registering Test series wins over Australia and England.
However, the team's performances declined at the ICC events. India failed to qualify for the T20 World Cup 2021 semifinals, lost the World Test Championship final and suffered an embarrassing 10-wicket loss in the semifinals of the T20 World Cup 2022. India also failed to make it to the Asia Cup 2022 final.
Due to the team's failures, reports emerged claiming that the BCCI has sacked the entire selection committee and invited fresh applications for the vacant positions. A few days back, the BCCI issued an official statement, announcing Chetan Sharma as the head of the selection committee yet again.
Other selectors in the new committee are Salil Ankola, Shiv Sundar Das, Subroto Banerjee, and Sridharan Sarath. While the previous selection committee made a few errors, here are three things that Chetan Sharma can do differently in his second term as the head of the selection committee.
#1 Chetan Sharma should plan rest and rotation policy in a better way
Over the last two years, the Indian team has undergone too many changes due to one reason or the other. There was hardly a series where all the main players played together in the playing XI.
The fact that India's A+ grade contract holders Jasprit Bumrah, Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma have only played in ODIs together since January 2020 highlights how the selections have worked over the last two years. While injuries are not in anyone's hands, the frequency and timing of rest can probably be better.
If the main players of the Indian team only play together at ICC events, then their chances of winning trophies reduce significantly.
#2 Should not drop new players without giving them a fair chance
Most fans may not remember that Rahul Tewatia earned his maiden national call-up in the same series as Ishan Kishan and Suryakumar Yadav. While Kishan has played one T20 World Cup for India and Yadav has become the world's number one T20I batter, Tewatia is yet to make his international debut.
Given the immense amount of talent present in Indian cricket, it is tough to give everyone a fair chance, but the selectors should try to at least give a few chances to players who are picked in the squads.
Even players like Krishnappa Gowtham, Sandeep Warrier, T Natarjan, Nitish Rana, Devdutt Padikkal, and Chetan Sakariya disappeared shortly after their debuts.
#3 Should not rush any cricketer to play after injury break
December 27th - BCCI announces the team for the SL series without Bumrah.
January 3rd - BCCI confirms NCA declared Bumrah is fit for the ODI series.
January 9th - BCCI says Bumrah is ruled out of the ODI series as he needs more time to build bowling resilience.
Last year, the selectors picked Jasprit Bumrah in the squad for the home T20I series against Australia. He got injured soon after and missed the T20 World Cup. Later, the selectors were blamed for rushing him back into the national squad.
Like Bumrah, there have been some other players who got injured almost immediately after recovering from a previous injury. The selectors should aim to work better in this area.
That said, Chetan Sharma's committee has done a good job by resting Bumrah for the upcoming ODI series against Sri Lanka, despite naming him in the squad just a few days ago.