Vaibhav Suryavanshi did not get a chance in the first T20 against Ireland. Due to this, Sachin Tendulkar’s record was saved from being broken. Shreyas Iyer told the reason for not being selected.
IND vs IRE: India’s 15-year-old young batsman Vaibhav Suryavanshi has attracted the attention of the cricket world ever since his selection in Team India. There was a lot of talk about his debut before the two-match T20 series against Ireland starting on Friday. On Thursday, a day before the match, Suryavanshi also did a long net session with the team. During this, he was also seen interacting with head coach Gautam Gambhir and other senior coaching staff of the Indian team. However, when India’s playing eleven was announced for the first T20 match, Vaibhav Suryavanshi’s name was not included in it.
Shreyas Iyer told the reason for not being selected
India’s new T20 captain Shreyas Iyer made it clear during the toss that Vaibhav Suryavanshi will not be a part of this match. He said, “Unfortunately Vaibhav is not playing in this match. He is a fantastic player, but we have many players who have performed well consistently. So we are relying on them at the moment. When the right time comes, Vaibhav will also get a chance.” After winning the toss, Shreyas Iyer decided to bowl first. Batting first, Ireland has set a target of 183 runs for India.
Strong top order becomes a big challenge
India’s strong batting order is also considered to be a major reason for Vaibhav Suryavanshi’s non-selection. The team already has batsmen like Abhishek Sharma, Sanju Samson and Ishan Kishan, who have consistently performed well in recent times. It was not an easy decision for the team management to drop any one of these players and give a chance to Vaibhav.
What did Sitanshu Kotak say?
Before the match, Indian batting coach Sitanshu Kotak had also expressed his opinion on this issue. He said that Vaibhav Suryavanshi will definitely get opportunities in the future, but it would not be appropriate to drop a player who is already scoring runs consistently just to play for him. Kotak said, “I am confident that Vaibhav will definitely get his chance. But it would not be right to drop a player who has been performing consistently just to give him a chance.”
‘Giving someone a chance and being unfair to others is a different thing’
Sitanshu Kotak believes that maintaining balance in team selection is the biggest challenge. He said, “There is a very fine difference between trying to give a chance to a player and being unfair to another player. So selection should always be based on performance.”
The decision is not easy for the selectors
Kotak also admitted that the number of talented players in Indian cricket is so high that choosing a team is not an easy task. He said, “There is so much talent in India that sometimes it becomes a headache even for the selectors. It is not difficult for me because I am neither the head coach nor the captain, but it is not an easy decision for the selectors.”
Vaibhav will have to wait now
Despite not getting a chance in the first T20 match, Vaibhav Suryavanshi remains an important part of the team management’s plans. Both captain Shreyas Iyer and batting coach Sitanshu Kotak have made it clear that the time for the young batsman will definitely come. For now, the team management wants to keep faith in those players who have performed consistently well in recent times.
Had it been a debut, it would have been a big record.
If Vaibhav Suryavanshi had got a chance in the first T20 match, he would have become the youngest player to play international cricket for India at the age of 15 years and 91 days. This record would have been recorded in the combined statistics of both male and female Indian cricketers. Currently, the record for playing international cricket at the youngest age for India is in the name of Shefali Verma, who made her debut at the age of 15 years and 239 days. This record in men’s cricket is in the name of Sachin Tendulkar. He played his first international match for India at the age of 16 years and 205 days.