It looks like the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) plays a game of musical chairs to pick the Indian team before the beginning of any important series. How else can anyone explain the strange choices that are made every time? The New Zealand series is around the corner, and again, we are seeing some choices that defy logic. It is high time that the selectors stopped treating India’s most talented players like toys – to be discarded or retained according to the whim of the moment.
First comes the burning issue – why has Mohammed Shami not been included despite being fully fit and in good form? What makes this decision look even more odd is that Shami has been kept out despite the absence of Jasprit Bumrah.
Bumrah has been named in the Indian squad for the T20I series vs New Zealand and the T20 World Cup 2026 next month. So, the star pacer was rested from the One-Day International (ODI) series in order to manage his workload. Bumrah has suffered many times from injuries, and therefore, the Indian team management would like him to play in only some games. That is understandable.
However, why not include Shami? He has picked up 47 wickets in 16 domestic matches, including 20 wickets in just four Ranji trophy matches. Add to that, 11 wickets in the Vijay Hazare trophy and 16 wickets in the Syed Mushtaq Ali trophy matches. That is a remarkable display of sustained fast bowling. What more must a bowler do to get selected? His exclusion is truly baffling.
When a player performs at the highest level, fights his way back from injury, proves himself in domestic cricket, and still doesn’t get his reward, it sends the wrong type of message to aspiring youngsters. They begin to feel that it is not just merit but other considerations behind the selections.
After the team was announced, Bengal’s head coach Laxmi Ratan Shukla lashed out at the selection committee and said that it was an “injustice” to a deserving player like Shami. “No international player has played domestic cricket with as much dedication as Shami in the recent past. Even after toiling hard in domestic cricket, what the selection committee has done to Shami is shameful,” Shukla fumed.
Many fans would agree with Shukla, who was himself a wonderful fast bowler in his prime.
But Hyderabad’s fans will be glad to see that Mohammed Siraj has made a comeback. However, why was he axed in the first place? Was he not good enough earlier but has inexplicably improved now? Or was the break intended to be a workload management issue? If so, it must be kept in mind that Siraj never had the injury problems that Bumrah had. With Bumrah absent, the best new ball combination right now against New Zealand would have been Shami and Siraj bowling in tandem.
Siraj last represented India in ODIs during the tour of Australia. He has been turning out for Hyderabad in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy and the Vijay Hazare Trophy. Shubman Gill, Shreyas Iyer and Siraj come into the squad in place of Tilak Varma, Dhruv Jurel and Ruturaj Gaikwad.
Shreyas Iyer has come back to the squad, which is good news. But, it is subject to his fitness. However, axing Ruturaj Gaikwad is again a questionable move. The selectors seem to have a penchant for the bits and pieces players. Otherwise, how is it that Nitish Kumar Reddy is given preference, while Ruturaj is overlooked?
Shubman Gill will return as ODI captain, while Shreyas Iyer (subject to fitness) will be his deputy for the entire three-match ODI series. All-rounder Hardik Pandya is being rested. Gill had missed the South Africa ODI series because of a neck spasm suffered during the Kolkata Test, while Iyer is making his return from a spleen injury he suffered during the tour of Australia.
Veterans Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma will be back in action for Team India. Both players have been in incredible form in ODIs and will look to continue the dominance. Expectations are also riding high on opener Yashasvi Jaiswal.
The Indian ODI team: Shubman Gill (C), Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, KL Rahul (WK), Shreyas Iyer (VC), Washington Sundar, Ravindra Jadeja, Mohammed Siraj, Harshit Rana, Prasidh Krishna, Kuldeep Yadav, Rishabh Pant (WK), Nitish Kumar Reddy, Arshdeep Singh and Yashasvi Jaiswal.
