Indian opener Kris Srikkanth is surprised after Suryakumar Yadav was dropped from the playing XI in the first match of the series against Sri Lanka in Guwahati. The Indian team management decided to drop Suryakumar Yadav and Ishan Kishan, who scored double centuries in the last ODI in Bangladesh. Skipper Rohit Sharma while talking to the press on the eve of the first ODI in Guwahati made it clear that Shubman Gill will be preferred ahead of Ishan in 2022 due to his consistent performance in ODIs.
Ahead of the ODI series, Suryakumar Yadav scored his third T20 century against Sri Lanka on Sunday. However, he is yet to prove his mettle in ODIs. India playing Shubman Gill ahead of Ishan also meant that KL Rahul retained his place as wicket-keeper batsman while Shreyas Iyer was rewarded for scoring consistent runs in ODIs in 2022.
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Talking to Star Sports about the selection headache facing the India team management in the ODI World Cup year, Kris Srikkanth said, “I think Washington Sundar should have been there. Hardik is Pandya, he is your vice-captain. He can bowl, so you could have fed another spin bowling allrounder. It’s important to groom all-rounders in a World Cup year. And Suryakumar Yadav, I’m so sorry, I feel bad for him, my dear friend.
He continued, “Top 5, when I see it. Tell me who are the influence players? Who is this boy? I refuse to believe it. Unfortunately Ishaan. ODI cricket is all about impact players. Surya is in tremendous form. He can change the game anytime. To be honest, we have to give it to Shreyas, he has been consistently good. But Surya will have to find a place for him in the team. Sun in the eleventh can do wonders.
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Meanwhile, Sanjay Manjrekar defended the move saying that he was able to understand why Suryakumar was not picked in the ODI XI for the Guwahati clash.
Sanjay Manjrekar explained, “I would have had Suriya but I can understand the logic of leaving him out. The greatness we have seen from Surya is in T20 cricket. Shubman Gill, they want to give him a long run. Why not give the same to Ishaan Kishan when he has a double hundred? The combination of left hand, right hand on top is important.”
