Indian team announced: Sarfaraz and Easwaran still not picked

Indian test team and ODI team were announced for the West Indies tour. Batters Yashasvi Jaiswal and Ruturaj Gaikwad earned maiden test call-ups for the tour. The squad announcement once again sparked the debate about the omission of Ranji Trophy batters like Sarfaraz Khan and Abhimanyu Easwaran.

Batters like Sarfaraz Khan and Abhimanyu Easwaran were omitted from the test line-up. The team also saw a big absence of Cheteshwar Pujara who has been one of the stalwarts of the Indian team batting at number 3. Experts and many fans questioned why Sarfaraz and Easwaran were not picked for the squad.

Sarfaraz Khan

Sarfaraz Khan in the 2022-23 Ranji Trophy season scored 556 runs in six matches across nine innings. In these nine innings, he scored three centuries. His average in the domestic season was 92.66 and he played at a strike rate of 72.49. Sarfaraz has been one of the most consistent batters in the Ranji Trophy. In the 2021/22 season, he scored 982 runs in nine innings at an average of 122.75. Earlier it was reported that the batter was not picked due to fitness issues. The BCCI has not given any clear reasoning behind Sarfaraz not getting picked. He was part of the Delhi Capitals squad in the 2023 IPL. He played 4 matches and look all over the place in those matches as he scored just 53 runs. Ranji Trophy is the Indian domestic first-class set-up and players’ performance in the competition has been getting ignored.

Abhimanyu Easwaran

Abhimanyu Easwaran was another notable omission from the squad for the West Indies tour. The opener for the Bengal team was the 7th highest run scorer in the Ranji Trophy this season. He scored 798 runs in 8 matches at an average of 66.50. Easwaran who bats in the top order for the Bengal team could have been someone who could replace Cheteshwar Pujara at number three.

Is BCCI ignoring the Ranji Trophy?

There have been few evidences of the BCCI ignoring performances from the Ranji Trophy and picking players on the basis of IPL form. The last Ranji Trophy season Ruturaj Gaikwad played was in 2019/20. He has since not played in the following two seasons. In the 2019/20 season, he played six matches and scored 439 runs at an average of 39.90. Gaikwad’s form in Ranji Trophy has been pretty average in comparison to Sarfaraz Khan and Abhimanyu Easwaran. Despite stark differences in performances between players Gaikwad was picked for the team and consistent performers like Sarfaraz Khan were once again ignored.