Former India pacer and 1983 World Cup winner Madan Lal has seriously questioned the BCCI (Board of Control for Cricket in India) selection committee in the wake of India's 0-2 Test series defeat to South Africa.

South Africa outplayed India in both the Tests in Kolkata and Guwahati to win their first Test series in India after 2000. They even handed India their biggest loss in terms of runs by 408 runs in Guwahati. This is also the first time since the 1980s that India has been whitewashed in Tests in consecutive years, with New Zealand winning 0-3 in 2024.

Madan Lal slammed the BCCI and national selection panel for choosing players for the Test team based on IPL performances and ignoring the real performers in domestic cricket, particularly the Ranji Trophy.

"I got the impression that these players are not serious about Test cricket anymore. I would call it the IPL effect, where the mentality is to hit every delivery for a six or a four. At times, I kept wondering that if you are going to pick players based on their IPL performances, then what's the need for playing the Ranji Trophy? That's your ultimate platform to find players who can bat for long, but it seems like they are turning a blind eye towards the premier tournament," said Lal in an interview with Sportstar.

Lal's criticism comes as several experienced players in India's first-class system, such as Sarfaraz Khan, Abhimanyu Easwaran, and Rinku Singh, are not given extended opportunities with the Test team.

While Lal criticized the move, he did not blame it entirely on head coach Gautam Gambhir.

"It's a collective failure. It's easiest to sack the coach. Yes, he has made mistakes, but putting all the blame on him is also not fair, because at the end of the day, the players, too, have made mistakes. The head coach and the players are equally accountable," said Lal.

India will have a chance to regroup in Test cricket as they play only white-ball cricket until July-August next year.