Team India is preparing for the upcoming England tour, which begins on 30 June. With the captaincy handed to Shubman Gill and the vice-captaincy entrusted to Rishabh Pant, the selectors have finalised the squad. For many, it came as quite a surprise. Mumbai batter Sarfaraz Khan has not been selected for the overseas series. The cricketer made his debut against England last year, playing six Test matches and scoring a total of 371 runs.
On the positive side, Karun Nair makes his return to Test cricket after seven years. More experienced than Sarfaraz, Nair is only the second Indian batter after Virender Sehwag to score a triple century in Test cricket. His last appearance came in the 2017 Test against Australia in Dharamsala.
Speaking about the selection, Chief Selector Ajit Agarkar shared his thoughts:
“It’s fair on somebody, it’s unfair on someone else. At the moment, he (Karun Nair) has scored heaps of runs. He has played a bit of county cricket.”
Experinced Karun gets the nod
While Sarfaraz’s omission raises questions, given his recent involvement with Team India, Agarkar justified the selection process.
“Sometimes you just have to make good decisions. Sarfaraz, I know he got a hundred in the first Test (against New Zealand) and then didn’t get runs. Sometimes these are decisions the team management takes. At the moment, Karun has scored heaps of runs in domestic cricket, has played some Test matches, and a bit of county cricket. With Virat not there, clearly we’re lacking a bit of experience. We felt his experience could help,” he added.
In Virat Kohli’s absence, the selectors needed a replacement with experience, and Nair seemed to be the perfect fit.
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