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regular-article-logo Thursday, 25 April 2024

ODI series: Posers ahead for Team India

BCCI’s search for a selector with experience of playing the T20 format hasn’t materialised so far

Indranil Majumdar Calcutta Published 09.12.22, 05:05 AM
Rohit Sharma on way to his unbeaten 51 with an injured finger on Thursday.

Rohit Sharma on way to his unbeaten 51 with an injured finger on Thursday. Twitter

If the humiliation in the T20 World Cup semi-final wasn’t enough, the loss to Bangladesh in the ODI series has set the alarm bells ringing among the BCCI brass.

The Board was not in favour of a knee-jerk reaction after the defeat Down Under but Wednesday’s embarrassment in Mirpur has made it necessary they stem the rot before it runs deep into the system. There is talk that Board secretary Jay Shah may convene a review meeting with head coach Rahul Dravid, captain Rohit Sharma and senior pro Virat Kohli once the team returns from Bangladesh.

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Several Board members have been critical of Dravid’s tactics and approach to limited overs cricket in private without dwelling on suitable alternative plans. The new senior selection committee will be finalised before the end of this month and a definite proposal is expected to be in place then.

The BCCI’s search for a selector with experience of playing the T20 format hasn’t materialised so far. The Cricket Advisory Committee comprising Ashok Malhotra, Jatin Paranjpe and Sulakshana Naik hasn’t yet been briefed by the Board but the emphasis is expected to be on picking selectors with a vision for rebuilding the team.

Former India pacer Venkatesh Prasad, who is tipped to be the new chairman of the selection committee, made his displeasure clear about the team management in a social media post on Wednesday.

“...whn it comes to playing Limited overs cricket, our approach is a decade old. England after the 2015 WC first round exit took tough calls and turned around to become such an exciting team, India need to take tough calls.. And change approach drastically,” Prasad tweeted.

While Pandya is set to take over the T20 captaincy to usher in the fearless brand of cricket, Rohit Sharma will retain his role till the ODI World Cup at home next year. Fielding coach TK Diliep is expected to face the music after a drastic fall in the standards.

Managing players’ injuries and workload has been another delicate issue. Even Rohit has expressed displeasure at players pulling up injured repeatedly after being passed fit by the National Cricket Academy (NCA). Deepak Chahar is the latest to join the list after an extensive rehab at the NCA.

Strength and conditioning coach Soham Desai’s role is also being talked about. The BCCI’s decision to shift physio Nitin Patel to the NCA hasn’t helped matters.

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