Team India's selection calls have come under the scanner in the ongoing England tour so far, and questions have only intensified following the team’s 22-run defeat in the third Test at Lord’s.
India head coach Gautam Gambhir finds himself in the centre of this storm. The visitors can’t afford to lose any more matches or the five-match series will be gone.
The environment was jovial in the Indian camp after the Shubman Gill-led side pulled off a historic 336-run victory in the second Test at Edgbaston to level the series.
However, the narrow loss at Lord’s has put them 1-2 behind in the series. Stakes are high heading into the penultimate Test, set to begin on July 23 at Old Trafford in Manchester.
Ahead of the match, several analysts and former cricketers have advocated for Arshdeep Singh and Kuldeep Yadav’s inclusion in the playing XI. Abhimanyu Easwaran is another name warming the bench.
In an interaction with RevSportz, former India cricketer WV Raman urged the Indian team management to provide Easwaran clarity over their plans regarding him.
Easwaran is yet to make his Test debut despite earning his maiden call-up for the tour of Bangladesh in 2022.
"For someone like Abhimanyu Easwaran, it is fair to give them a string of chances. One odd sporadic Test is not going to work for the individual or the team. People have to take a call on him. There is, of course, no point in carrying a cricketer tour after tour and not giving him opportunities. Judgmental calls are fine because that's the nature of the beast in cricket. Coaches and selectors do make judgmental calls. The thing is that there comes a time when it becomes a little bit tricky for everybody concerned because the player himself doesn't know how he is looked at," Raman said.
He further stated that there's no point having Easwaran in the squad if they don't give him a chance.
"The team management is also not sure what to do with one particular player. I am not saying Abhimanyu is not good. It's better if the decision makers come to a conclusion and decide what exactly he is all about. He has been performing in domestic cricket for a long time. He has been part of the A sides. He is even being made the captain of the A side, which means they do rate him. But he doesn't seem to be getting the nod," Raman added.
