Big names like Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, Jasprit Bumrah and more have been missing from the list of the upcoming Duleep Trophy 2024. Star all-rounder Hardik Pandya has no plan of playing red-ball cricket at the moment so he is out of the picture and other seniors are given rest with the upcoming busy schedule in mind of the BCCI. However, former cricketer Sunil Gavaskar does not agree with the break given to batters like Kohli and Rohit as he explained batters start losing muscle memory when not in practice regularly.
He understood the decision of giving rest to Bumrah to manage the workload as a bowler but is not a fan of giving rest to senior batsmen even like Kohli or Rohit. The 75-year-old suggested that the duo should have participated in the Duleep Trophy, as it would have provided them with valuable match practice. (Rinku Singh Wants To Play For RCB In IPL 2025 If Not Retained By KKR In IPL Auction)
“The selectors have not picked the skipper Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli for the Duleep Trophy so they will most likely go into the Bangladesh Test series without much match practice,” Gavaskar wrote in his column for the Mid-day.
“While it’s understandable that somebody like Jasprit Bumrah with his delicate back needs to be handled with care, the batters could have done with some batting time out in the middle. Once a player hits the mid-thirties in any sport, then regular competition will help him maintain the high standards he has set. When there’s a longish gap then the muscle memory weakens somewhat and to get back to the high standards from earlier is not easy,” he added. (’10 Years of Unfinished Business’: This Australian Player Warns Team India Ahead Of Border-Gavaskar Series)
BCCI secretary Jay Shah previously explained that the board does not want to risk of some key players getting injured as India get ready for a 2-match series against Bangladesh, 3-match vs New Zealand and 5-match vs Australia.