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According to a report in news agency PTI, Indian players will have to provide valid medical reasons for skipping any bilateral matches in the future.
India stars barred from missing bilateral series. (Picture Credit: PTI)
Indian men’s cricket team head coach Gautam Gambhir, chief selector Ajit Agarkar, captain Rohit Sharma, and top BCCI officials met in Mumbai on Saturday (January 11) to review India’s performance in the recently concluded five-match Test series against Australia. It has been reported that the board has decided against any knee-jerk response to the debacle that was largely blamed on the poor form of senior players.
“There was a detailed discussion on the Border-Gavaskar Trophy performance and what all went wrong and the course correction required. But do not expect a hurried decision from the new dispensation of BCCI,” a source was quoted as saying by news agency PTI.
According to the available information, it has also been decided that Indian players won’t be allowed to pick and choose bilateral assignments based on their whims and fancies. They will have to provide valid medical reasons for skipping any games.
The Board has already directed the stars to turn up for domestic engagements, with Gambhir stating firmly that all those who are committed to red-ball cricket must show up for Ranji Trophy matches.
The second phase of the Ranji Trophy 2024-25 is set to start on January 23, and it will be interesting to see if the likes of Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, and Rohit Sharma, who failed to fire in the 2024-25 edition of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy, take the field for their respective sides.
Bumrah out of CT?
Star Indian fast bowler Jasprit Bumrah, who accounted for the dismissal of 32 batters in the five-match Test series against Australia, is reportedly set to miss the group stage matches of the ICC Champions Trophy 2025. According to a report in the Indian Express on Sunday, Bumrah has a swelling on his back, and he has been asked to report to the National Cricket Academy (NCA) in Bengaluru, where his recovery will be monitored.
Bumrah is expected to be fully fit only by the first week of March.
“He (Bumrah) will be going to NCA for his rehabilitation. The initial report says he doesn’t have a fracture but has swelling on his back. So the NCA will monitor his recovery, and he will be there for three weeks. But even after that, he will have to play a match or two, even if they are practice games organised to check his match fitness,” said the source.
