"See, for Ruturaj, I don't understand at all. Poor fellow! What will he do?" - K Srikkanth questions BCCI's decision to exclude the opening batter
Former India cricketer Kris Srikkanth criticized the manner in which the team management has treated Ruturaj Gaikwad, following his absence from both the Border-Gavaskar series squad as well as the team for the South Africa T20Is. The opening batter was recently named captain of the India A side touring Australia, and is the third-highest ranked Indian batter in T20Is, behind Suryakumar Yadav and Yashasvi Jaiswal.
Gaikwad was touted as a potential backup opener for the Border-Gavaskar series, a role that could have led to a debut given Rohit Sharma's potential absence in the initial part of the series. Following a relatively prolific Duleep Trophy campaign, he began the Ranji season on a high, recording a fifty and a hundred in his first couple of games while leading Maharashtra.
Kris Srikkanth remarked that Gaikwad must be feeling lost after his recent snub from the national side.
"See, for Ruturaj, I don't understand at all. Poor fellow! What will he do? If he scores a century, then they can take him back into the T20I squad, right? He scored two first-class centuries, but still didn't get a chance. He got scores to back him up. Where should that guy be going now?” Srikkanth said on his YouTube channel.
Ruturaj Gaikwad was not part of the T20I series against Bangladesh as well, with his absence put down to preparation for the Border-Gavaskar series. The opening batter had a solid T20I series against Zimbabwe, which propelled him into the top 10 ranked batters in the world.
"When it comes to international cricket, you leave him behind" - Kris Srikkanth on selection inconsistency when it comes to Gaikwad
Ruturaj Gaikwad has struggled to cement his place in the national set-up, with sporadic white-ball appearances being the trend so far. The Border-Gavaskar was touted to be the opener's entry into red-ball cricket, given his recent form, and general consistency over the last couple of years.
However, despite being named as India A captain and runs under his belt, he failed to make it to the main squad as Abhimanyu Easwaran claimed the spot.
“Abhimanyu Easwaran's performance has been brilliant. I'm not questioning that. But what are you doing with Ruturaj? Why aren't they twirling around with him? What's the plan? Let them do what they want with him. Just look at the mindset of that kid and tell me what he should be doing in this match against you guys. He keeps on hitting the opponents all day long, but then, when it comes to international cricket, you leave him behind. And when they give him a chance, it's for the Rest of India or India A,” Srikkanth said in the same video.
The T20I series between India and South Africa will take place from November 8 onwards while the Border-Gavaskar series is slated to kickstart from November 22.