'Motivated' Jaydev Unadkat responds to questions on his snub from India squad for tour to England
Jaydev Unadkat is more 'motivated' than ever to earn a Test call-up after being snubbed from India's squad for their three-month long tour of England.
India's extended 24-man squad for the World Test Championship (WTC) final and five-Test series against England includes six frontline pacers and three standbys - Avesh Khan, Prasidh Krishna and Arzan Nagwaswalla.
The likes of Krishna and Nagwaswalla received their maiden nod following impressive performances in the domestic circuit.
However, Jaydev Unadkat, who marshaled Saurashtra to the Ranji Trophy title with a record tally of 67 wickets in the 2019-20 season, found himself out of national reckoning once again.
Former Indian cricketer Dodda Ganesh criticized the exclusion in a tweet on the day of the squad's announcement. Ganesh said it was 'perplexing' to see the left-arm pacer being ignored by selectors.
"What else does @JUnadkat need to do to get into the Indian test squad. It’s perplexing to see him being ignored again and again despite great performances year after year at the FC level," Ganesh, who played 5 internationals for India, said.
Jaydev Unadkat came up with a confident reply on Sunday, saying:
"Your concern motivates me even more! Bring on the next season.."
Jaydev Unadkat has amassed 327 wickets from 89 first-class matches, at an average of 23.21 and a strike-rate of 47.20.
Jaydev Unadkat's performances in IPL 2021
Despite his returns in domestic cricket, Jaydev Unadkat's average performances in the Indian Premier League (IPL) were considered a major stumbling block in his path to the national team. This time, however, the 29-year-old set this record straight as well.
Playing for the Rajasthan Royals (RR), Unadkat picked up four wickets from as many games in IPL 2021, including a match-winning 3/15 against the Delhi Capitals.
He will now most likely feature in the 2021-22 domestic season, which is expected to begin in September, before IPL 2021 resumes.