"We'd like them to play a bit more cricket": Agarkar on Ishan Kishan, Mohammed Shami

New Delhi [India], September 25 (ANI): Chief selector Ajit Agarkar has shared his thoughts on Ishan Kishan and Mohammed Shami, stressing the importance of game time for both players before they can be considered for regular selection.

Speaking on Kishan’s inclusion, Agarkar said on his presence in the Irani Trophy squad, “Yeah, he’s in the Irani Trophy team, yes. When we picked India A, he was not yet fit anyway. So he’s fit now. He’s a very good player as we know Ishan Kishan, but we’d like him to play a bit more cricket and show some performances.”

Regarding veteran pacer Mohammed Shami, the chief selector admitted there were no fresh updates but highlighted his lack of recent match practice.

“I don’t have an update. I think he has not played a lot of cricket in the last 2-3 years. I think he’s played one match for Bengal and one for the Duleep Trophy. So as a performer, we know what he can do, but he will need to play some cricket,” Agarkar explained.

India’s chief selector Ajit Agarkar on Thursday announced a fifteen-member squad for the upcoming home Test series against West Indies, scheduled to begin on October 2 in Ahmedabad.

Despite speculation that Shubman Gill might be rested due to his involvement in India’s Asia Cup T20I campaign, the selectors have opted for a full-strength squad, including Jasprit Bumrah, for the World Test Championship campaign.

India will play two Test matches against the West Indies.

Karun Nair is not in the squad. Ravindra Jadeja has been announced as the vice captain.

Prasidh Krishna, who had a promising run in the Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy, has been included despite suffering a head injury during India A’s second match against Australia A in Lucknow on Wednesday, which forced him to leave the field.

Rishabh Pant misses out as he continues to recover from a foot injury.

The Indian team will play the Asia Cup final on Sunday, September 28, giving Gill and a few other players just a few days before joining the Test squad. The selectors’ decision to go with a strong line-up reflects India’s intent to keep up a strong World Test Championship campaign.

India squad: Shubman Gill (c), Yashasvi Jaiswal, KL Rahul, Sai Sudharsan, Devdutt Padikkal, Dhruv Jurel, Ravindra Jadeja, Washington Sundar, Jasprit Bumrah, Axar Patel, Nitish Kumar Reddy, N Jagadeesan, Mohammed Siraj, Prasidh Krishna, Kuldeep Yadav.

Rest of India squad (Irani Cup): Rajat Patidar (C), Abhimanyu Easwaran, Aryan Juyal (WK), Ruturaj Gaikwad (VC), Yash Dhull, Shaikh Rasheed, Ishan Kishan (WK), Tanush Kotian, Manav Suthar, Gurnoor Brar, Khaleel Ahmed, Akash Deep, Anshul Kamboj, Saransh Jain. (ANI)

(The article has been published through a syndicated feed. Except for the headline, the content has been published verbatim. Liability lies with original publisher.)