"You need to be in a relationship with some Bollywood actresses, have a good media manager, and have body tattoos" - S Badrinath on Gaikwad's snub
Former India batter Subramanium Badrinath has made strong accusations against the selection committee and the team management following Ruturaj Gaikwad's omission from the squad for the Sri Lanka tour. The opening batter, who had a fruitful series in Zimbabwe, was not considered by Gautam Gambhir for his first-ever assignment as head coach.
Gaikwad, a regular member of the second-string squad since leading India to the gold medal in the 2023 Asian Games, initially played as an opener in Zimbabwe before switching to the middle order. The arrival of Yashasvi Jaiswal saw a shake-up in the top order, but Gaikwad continued to be among the runs in the middle order as well.
His recent form was rewarded with a boost in the ICC rankings as he entered the top 10. India decided to name only two openers in the T20I side in the form of Shubman Gill and Jaiswal, while Rohit Sharma's return meant that Gaikwad could not find a place in the ODI setup as well.
“Sometimes it seems like you need a bad guy image when the likes of Rinku Singh, Ruturaj Gaikwad and others are not selected for the Indian team. It seems that you need to be in a relationship with some Bollywood actresses, have a good media manager, and have body tattoos,” Badrinath said on Cric Debate with Badri.
Even before the Zimbabwe series, Gaikwad had a good run in the Maharashtra Premier League. He scored 313 runs in eight matches and also had a solid Indian Premier League (IPL) campaign for the Chennai Super Kings (CSK).
Ruturaj Gaikwad scored 133 runs in three innings during the Zimbabwe tour
The opening batter could not make an impression in Team India's shocking loss in the series opener but responded strongly by scoring an unbeaten 77 and a 49 in the subsequent matches.
He ended up as the fourth leading run-scorer of the series behind Shubman Gill, Yashasvi Jaiswal, and Dion Myers. There was widespread outrage after Gaikwad was snubbed from the squad, with fans and pundits being equally surprised regarding the decision.
Team India's tour of Sri Lanka will kickstart from July 27 onwards. It comprises three ODIs and three T20Is.