Time to blood in Ruturaj Gaikwad, Yashasvi Jaiswal; Dravid, Rohit, selectors need to be bolder

As early as the end of the England tour in 2021, then captain Virat Kohli had made a rallying pitch. In a series where Cheteshwar Pujara and Ajinkya Rahane struggled, Kohli wanted India to enter a transition phase. It wasn’t the first time he was talking about transition. At the end of the tour of New Zealand in 2020, he would talk about having these “mini transitions” every now and then, especially in the bowling group to remain in a good stead. In England after pausing the series with 2-1 lead because of a Covid breakdown, Kohli would serve a reminder again.In less than six months, Kohli would be removed as captain in limited-overs and he would eventually step down as skipper of the Test team too. And those transition talks never, ever cropped up. Kohli and then head coach Ravi Shastri were flirting with the idea of middle-order reinforcements as early as the 2021 tour of England. But in Covid year with no first-class cricket happening in India the previous year, they would put those plans to the back burner. Any transition or reinforcements was supposed to be carried out a new head coach – read Rahul Dravid and the selection panel. It made sense. Start from scratch with a new captain, possibly new set of batsmen in the middle-order and groom fast bowlers on the way so that they are ready to take over the mantle when the 2023 World Test Championship cycle begins.

But here we are again, after the second successive World Test Championship final, with the core group of players still the same, and the long pending transition nowhere in sight. The only sort of transition that happened was India looked past Hanuma Vihari over Shreyas Iyer, as if to show they were beginning to look at younger players. But that was just the odd move. large, they have been defensive even in picking the resources.
Cricketer Yashasvi Jaiswal during a pratice session ahead of the World Test Championship’s (WTC) final match against Australia at the Oval, in Arundel. (PTI)
In the just concluded WTC cycle, India had an opportunity to make a few changes in the middle-order. While they did bring in Shreyas Iyer, they went back to Pujara and Rahane showed how far they were lacking in depth when it came to seeking reinforcements. For a team that was boasting proudly of bench strength when they triumphed against all odds in Australia in 2021, it now finds reluctant to use them.
While the absence of India A tour programs have denied the selectors how the next rung of batters perform in away conditions against challenging attacks, it has also given the likes of Pujara, Rahane, KL Rahul a long rope. With selectors hesitant to throw the likes of Sarfaraz Khan, Abhimanyu Easwaran, Rajat Patidar – the most consent performers in the domestic circuit – in the national fold, or give a consent run to Suryakumar Yadav, India have been carrying a shaky middle-order for long.
The next WTC cycle begins for India with two Tests in the Caribbean in July and there are strong indications that there would be changes in the offering. With skipper Rohit Sharma’s availability being the key for the World Cup, it is not certain at this stage whether he would lead in the Tests against West Indies. In case he opts out, the selectors are likely to hand a call-up to Yashasvi Jaiswal, who appears ready for the big league thanks to some exceptional performance across all formats in the domestic circuit.
Chennai Super Kings batter Ruturaj Gaikwad plays a shot during the IPL 2023 first qualifier cricket match between Chennai Super Kings and Gujarat Titans, at M. A. Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai, Tuesday, May 23, 2023. (PTI Photo/R Senthil Kumar)
While Jaiswal seems to be the one identified to open alongside Shubman Gill at the top for now – there are indications that Gill could slot in the middle-order going forward – the selectors are also looking at the likes of Ruturaj Gaikwad as an option for No 5. Easwaran, another batsman who has been consent in the domestic arena, but failed to make a pressing case for his inclusion faltering in the Ranji Trophy knockouts, is an option for No 3. While these three seem to be in the waiting l, it would be interesting to see what they do with Sarfaraz. There are concerns about the Mumbaikar’s struggles against fast bowlers, which seem to weigh heavily against him. With these concerns to address, selectors have been pushing the BCCI to restart the A tour where the likes of Tilak Verma, B Sai Sudharsan, Rinku Singh, Abhishek Sharma, Yash Dhull can be groomed.
While there are at least batsmen waiting in the wings, the fast bowling resource that made India an envy of the world not too long ago, appears to have lost its way. In the past decade, the Under-19 World Cups have thrown up some exciting fast bowling prospects for India, but none of them appear ready to make the big step. While Kamlesh Nagarkoti’s career has been stalled with injuries, Shivam Mavi, Kartik Tyagi are yet to hit the strides in the domestic arena. In Avesh Khan, Arshdeep Singh, Umran Malik, India do have resources to invest in (fitness permitting), but like in the case of the batting unit, have delayed their inclusion.

These delays may have cricketing logic to it, especially the lack of A tour programs. But it also highlights how they haven’t had a long-term vision which is essential for teams that consently fight for top prizes. With Ravindra Jadeja, R Ashwin, Mohammed Shami, Mohammed Siraj, Rishabh Pant, Kohli around, the nucleus of the side remains intact. Throw in the likes of KL Rahul, Hanuma Vihari, Axar Patel, Washington Sundar, India are not short on options. For a team that has plenty of talents to choose from, they need to take bold calls. And for that they need a selection panel that spells out a vision , but at the moment sans a chairman, they appear to be wandering without a destination in sight. Appointing a chairman of the selectors would be the first signs of turnaround. Then they can think deeply about who the coach should be. And then decide who the captain is.