After the ODI series against Sri Lanka, as India struggled against spin on the Premadasa Stadium turner, Rohit Sharma was asked about the importance of playing domestic cricket. The Indian team of the current vintage doesn’t play spin well on turning pitches and not featuring in domestic cricket, the Ranji Trophy to be precise, has negatively affected the players’ skill-set. Rohit agreed with the assessment.
“Domestic cricket is the backbone of our game,” the India captain told reporters. “We pick our players for Tests and ODIs mainly from domestic cricket. It is of huge importance.”
There’s a renewed emphasis on domestic cricket from the BCCI and revamping the Duleep Trophy is a step in the right direction. The tournament, which commences from September 5, is no longer a zonal affair. Instead, the Ajit Agarkar-led selection committee has picked four teams — Team A, Team B, Team C and Team D. The four teams comprise 61 cricketers and barring Rohit, Virat Kohli, Jasprit Bumrah, Ravichandran Ashwin and Mohammed Shami, almost every international cricketer would be featuring in the tournament.
Over the next few months, India are going to play 10 Tests — two against Bangladesh and three against New Zealand at home, and a five-Test series in Australia in the winter. It’s a packed red-ball calendar and from that perspective, the Duleep Trophy followed by the first half of the Ranji Trophy assumes real significance. Here are a few things to look into…
Pant to make red-ball comeback
He has made a World Cup-winning return to white-ball cricket, but Rishabh Pant has been integral to India’s Test fortunes and he needs to get into the red-ball groove. The wicketkeeper-batter hasn’t played any first-class cricket since December 2022 and the Duleep Trophy should prepare him for the upcoming Test series against Bangladesh in September. The focus is firmly on the tour Down Under, for that’s a marquee contest. And India need Pant at his peak in Australia.
Pant is in Team B but interestingly, the side is led by Abhimanyu Easwaran. Between the lines, the selectors aren’t considering the 26-year-old as a future captaincy candidate. Shubman Gill has already been promoted to vice-captaincy in T20Is and ODIs, and he will lead Team A in the Duleep Trophy. Clearly, Gill is being considered as an all-format captain for the future.
Why aren’t the Galacticos playing?
As regards to Rohit, Kohli and Ashwin, it is learnt that the BCCI and the selectors have chosen to be careful with their workload management. They are on the wrong side of thirty and at this stage of their career, their involvement is likely to be restricted solely to international cricket.
Bumrah is precious and Indian cricket is wrapping him up in cotton wool. According to sources, the fast bowler might not even play the Bangladesh Tests and could return for the series against New Zealand after an extended break. India need Bumrah at his best in Australia.
Why isn’t Shami selected?
He hasn’t played any cricket since the end of the World Cup last year. He underwent an ankle surgery and although Shami doesn’t feature in the Duleep Trophy mix, it is learnt that he is very close to coming back to the fold. He has started bowling full-tilt at the National Cricket Academy, but it needs to be seen if the fast bowler will be considered for the Tests against Bangladesh.
Kishan is back
The Jharkhand player, along with Shreyas Iyer, lost his central contract for not playing domestic cricket. After returning mid-tour from South Africa last year for reasons not related to cricket, Ishan Kishan went through a period of uncertainty. But the BCCI doesn’t bear a grudge. Playing the Ranji Trophy semi-final and final was Iyer’s atonement and he was brought back to the India fold for the ODIs in Sri Lanka. The Mumbai batter will lead Team D in Duleep Trophy, with Kishan in his side. For the latter, it’s a new beginning.
By the way, there is a clear directive from the cricket board now that players will have to make themselves available for domestic tournaments when they aren’t playing for India or doing their rehab at the NCA.
A pool of fast bowlers
Bumrah, Shami and Mohammed Siraj are India’s first-choice pacers in red-ball cricket. Beyond them, the idea is to create a pool of fast bowlers, with an eye on the series in Australia. A total of 19 seamers have been picked across four teams in the Duleep Trophy. Prasidh Krishna’s return, who was out injured for a while, is a positive.
Rinku’s absence defies logic
Rinku Singh is not a one-trick pony, although he is considered only for the shortest format as far as international cricket is concerned. The southpaw has an average of 54.70 over 47 first-class matches. That he is not among the top 60 cricketers in the country when it comes to red-ball cricket defies logic.
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