Four of India's top cricketers have indicated to their state associations their intention to play in the final two rounds of the domestic Ranji Trophy tournament as if following in on the advice of former captains Sunil Gavaskar and Ravi Shastri after their dismal performances in the recently concluded Border-Gavaskar Trophy series in Australia.
Rohit Sharma, Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, and Rishabh Pant are the four India stars who could appear for their respective state associations in Ranji Trophy matches.
On Tuesday, India Test and ODI captain Sharma joined the Mumbai Ranji Trophy team in a practice session and is set to continue training with the team throughout the week. The team had a two-hour centre-wicket practice session at Wankhede Stadium in preparation for their sixth-round home match against Jammu and Kashmir.
Though Sharma has not officially confirmed his availability for the Ranji Trophy match, his decision to train with the team, in consultation with head coach Omkar Salvi, indicates a potential availability for at least one of the two remaining fixtures. The Mumbai Cricket Association (MCA) is expected to announce the squad later this week.
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Show more newsFellow top-order batter Gill has reportedly made himself available for Punjab's sixth-round fixture against Karnataka. Gill, who had also fared poorly in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy, had last featured in the Ranji trophy in 2022 when played in the quarterfinal against Madhya Pradesh.
Meanwhile, the names of star batter Kohli and wicket-keeper Pant have been added to the initial squad announced by the Delhi Ranji Trophy selectors. Their names were reportedly added to the squad at the last minute along with that of pacer Harshit Rana and they are expected to play at least one of the two remaining fixtures for Delhi.
The final decision on whether to play or not has been left to Kohli and Pant but a senior Delhi and District Cricket Association official said they will be happy to accommodate them.
Virat Kohli and Rishabh Pant are our star players and we will welcome them if they want to play the match. But we have to look at their workload also as they have returned from Australia only a few days back. They will also consult the team management and NCA coaches and will follow the suggestions they will get from them.
These players seem to be following the advice of many experts including former India skippers Sunil Gavaskar and Ravi Shastri, who want the India team players not involved in the T20 series against England starting on January 22.
Both Gavaskar and Shastri had suggested that the national team player should turn out for their respective state associations in domestic long-form games to re-inculcate the habit of staying in the middle for a long time and building up a big innings.
The next round of the Ranji Trophy begins on January 23, let's see who all play, who all are available.
That will tell you (who all are serious). There should be no excuse, that we can't play, this and that. If you don't play, then (head coach) Gautam Gambhir should say 'You don't have commitment, we need commitment. You aren't playing, okay? Do whatever you want, but you can't return to the Indian Test team.
Shastri strongly advocated for both Kohli and Rohit Sharma to play Ranji Trophy matches ahead of their next assignment.
f there's a gap for them, they should go back and play some domestic cricket and see how it is. Because when you play Test match cricket for that length of time, it's important to play domestic cricket for two reasons -- one you are abreast with the current generation (and) you can contribute to that younger generation with your experience. And more importantly, you get to play spin more than you will ever play.
At least four Indian players seem to be following their suggestions and have taken to domestic cricket to regain form. More are likely to follow suit in the next day or two.
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