India keeper-batter Dinesh Karthik has revealed how captain Rohit Sharma and coach Rahul Dravid had a talk with some players who were only going to be picked in the Indian XI for the T20 World Cup 2022 if conditions suited their inclusion and made them feel secure.
Two players Harshal Patel and Yuzvendra Chahal were the ones who didn’t get any matches in the T20 World Cup 2022, for which Rohit Sharma and Rahul Dravid were criticized after India failed to qualify for the final of the tournament as they were crushed by England in the semi-final at Adelaide.
Despite veterans and experts making his case ahead of every match, the management went ahead of Ashwin as their lead spinner owing to his batting abilities and Akshar Patel as the second choice.
With Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Arshdeep Singh getting the ball to swing and Mohammad Shami bowling the hard lengths, Harshal Patel failed to get a game in the tournament.
While Rohit and Dravid was slammed for picking Ashwin over Chahal, and Harshal not getting any match, Dinesh Karthik, during his conversation with Cricbuzz revealed that both the players were given clarity over their selection.
He said that Rohit and Dravid made it clear to them that they would make the XI only if conditions favored their presence or else they might have to sit out the entire tournament.
“They didn't sulk once or get upset once because they were very sure. At the start of the tournament, they were said that under these conditions we would be playing you otherwise it might be hard. So, they were very aware and were preparing in such a way that when get an opportunity they will try and do their best but there might be a chance that they end up not playing.
So, when that clarity is there from the coach and captain it makes the job easier for the player because you just start looking inward and think okay what do I do to start preparing better. That is what they were doing and had they been given a chance they would have given their best. This is a very high intensity tournament. As mentioned, he played a lot of matches for India and he knows the feeling of being dropped,” he said on Cricbuzz.
Yuzvendra Chahal and Harshal Patel are currently with the Indian team in New Zealand for the T20I series.
