India was infamously whitewashed in a Test series at home by New Zealand.
This was the first time since 2000 that India was whitewashed in a Test series at home and the first time New Zealand had whitewashed them in Tests.
And now, reports have suggested that several senior players declined the BCCI selectors’ request to play domestic cricket ahead of the India Test home season. The senior players reportedly declined the request and said no to playing in the Duleep Trophy to get match practice under their belts.
On Sunday, several experts felt that lack of adequate match practice was a key reason behind the 0-3 whitewash at home against the Kiwis.
“They should have had some practice, definitely. It’s a long gap. I know we beat Bangladesh and therefore, it looked as if it was going to be a cakewalk against New Zealand. But New Zealand, obviously, had a better attack, with cricketers who have played in India and in the IPL, who have a sense of what Indian pitches do,” Sunil Gavaskar told Indian Express.
As per the Indian Express report, the selection committee wanted top Indian players to receive some match practice in the Duleep Trophy, as preparation for the home series against Bangladesh and New Zealand, but they declined to play in the domestic competition, alleging "lack of motivation".
Most of the senior cricketers were not at their best, particularly against New Zealand. They struggled to deal with home conditions and negotiate the turning ball, which was second nature to previous generations of players.
Even skipper Rohit Sharma and senior batsmen Virat Kohli had a disappointing series. Kohli scored 192 runs in his past ten innings, whereas Sharma only managed 133. Both have played very little domestic cricket of late. Sharma last played in the Ranji Trophy in 2015, whereas Kohli did so in 2012.
The top-tier Indian cricketers had more than a month’s gap after the T20 World Cup 2024 win. The BCCI selection committee planned to have all the senior players playing the Duleep Trophy to provide them with some match practice before the red-ball season.
According to reports, Sharma and Kohli, as well as other key players, initially consented. However, some of the top players eventually decided to withdraw their names, and they entered the two Tests against Bangladesh (in September) and three against New Zealand with little recent red-ball cricket experience.
According to sources, when Sharma, Kohli, Ravichandran Ashwin, and Jasprit Bumrah did not participate in the Duleep Trophy, the selection committee chose to release Ravindra Jadeja, who had committed to compete in the domestic event.
Shubman Gill, Sarfaraz Khan, Rishabh Pant, Yashasvi Jaiswal, K L Rahul, and Washington Sundar were among those that competed in the Duleep Trophy before the home Test season, with most of them taking at least one meaningful innings in the five Tests.
(Indian Express report)