Sunil Gavaskar Surprised By Spin Duo’s Omission From India Squad For New Zealand Series | Cricket News

Former India skipper Sunil Gavaskar questioned the exclusion of spinners Rahul Chahar and Varun Chakaravarthy for the upcoming T20I series against New Zealand. The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) on Tuesday announced a 16-man squad, led by Rohit Sharma, for the three-match T20I series, starting November 17. While the likes of Virat Kohli, Jasprit Bumrah, Ravindra Jadeja and Mohammed Shami have been rested for the series, Hardik Pandya, Rahul Chahar, Shardul Thakur and Varun Chakaravarthy did not find a place in the squad, despite being a part of the T20 World Cup side.

Rahul Chahar played just one game in the T20 World Cup, against Namibia, conceding 30 runs in his four-over quota. Experienced leggie Yuzvendra Chahal has been recalled to the side to replace him.

Rahul Chahar, however, has been named by BCCI in India ‘A’ side for their tour of South Africa, which gets underway from November 23.

“They (Yuzvendra Chahal and Deepak Chahar) have been proven performers. Them coming back, with the experience they have, will certainly strengthen the Indian team,” Gavaskar said during a discussion on Sports Today.

“But Rahul Chahar will be wondering what he has done that he is not in this 16-man squad. He was good enough to be in the T20 World Cup squad. He got one opportunity and gave away 7.5 runs per over. He will certainly be wondering what he did wrong. And I hope that someone from the selection committee will actually tell him why is he not in the squad,” the 72-year-old added.

“Even Varun Chakaravarthy needs to be told why he wasn’t picked in the squad. Unless of course, he is injured, and we don’t know about it. Only if someone tells them the exact reason, so that they can go back and work on their shortcomings and come back stronger. That will be the only way Indian cricket will get stronger,” he further stated.

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India squad for New Zealand T20Is:

Rohit Sharma (capt.), KL Rahul (vice-Captain), Ruturaj Gaikwad, Shreyas Iyer, Suryakumar Yadav, Rishabh Pant (wicket-keeper), Ishan Kishan (wicket-keeper), Venkatesh Iyer, Yuzvendra Chahal, R Ashwin, Axar Patel, Avesh Khan, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Deepak Chahar, Harshal Patel, Mohammed Siraj