Indian limited-overs team captain Shikhar Dhawan said on Saturday that there has been no request from the Indian cricket board to release any of the batsmen from the squad in Sri Lanka as reinforcement for the Test squad in England.
“We have not received any news as such and until we get any demand or news from BCCI, then only we will have to change our strategy. Up until now, we haven’t got any information,” said Dhawan to the media in a virtual interaction on being asked if departure of any of the players will lead to a change in strategy.
News emerged in sections of the media that the Indian team management in England has asked for reinforcements after Shubman Gill returned home due to injury and pace bowler Avesh Khan got injured in the tourists’ warm-up against County Select XI this week.
As many as four names — Prithvi Shaw, Devdutt Padikkal, Suryakumar Yadav, who are all in Sri Lanka, besides off-spinner Jayant Yadav — have come up as options for reinforcement. However, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), which hasn’t even confirmed Gill’s injury or return home, is yet to clarify.
But Dhawan’s statement suggests that the young batsmen may travel to England only after the tour of Sri Lanka gets over on July 29.
Dhawan, who himself has been a Test opener before being axed, however felt that batsman Yadav is ready to play the longer format of the game since he has great experience in domestic cricket.
“Surya is batting very well in ODIs or T20Is. He has vast experience in domestic cricket. He is a very mature player. If he is given a chance, [in case] he is needed in the Test team [by the team management], and if the selectors think he is needed, [I feel] he is a very good technical batsman, a very smart thinker of the game. I am sure he will do very well in any format,” added Dhawan.
