Abhimanyu Easwaran’s father has openly criticised Gautam Gambhir for choosing Karun Nair over his son for the ongoing England Test series.
Despite being around the national setup for years and scoring consistently in domestic cricket, Easwaran continues to wait for his India debut, which left his father deeply frustrated with the selection logic.
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Let's see what he had to say.
Abhimanyu Easwaran still waiting to debut despite strong domestic performances
Abhimanyu Easwaran has been part of the Indian Test setup for a long time now but is yet to play his first match.
He has travelled with the squad multiple times, including on tours to Bangladesh and England, often as a backup opener.
His father, Ranganathan Easwaran, expressed disappointment and said that Easwaran has done everything expected of a batter. He has scored runs across formats and seasons.
From his Duleep Trophy and Irani Trophy appearances to the India A matches, Easwaran has remained consistent. The 29-year-old batter made nearly 864 runs from last year till now.
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"I'm not keeping a count of the number of days that Abhimanyu has been waiting for his Test debut. I am counting the years; it has been three years now. What is the job of a player? It is to score runs. He has done that," said Ranganathan.
"Abhimanyu scored close to 864 runs if you consider the period from last year to the current year," he added.
What is the reason behind Karun Nair’s selection over Easwaran?
One of the biggest points of anger for Easwaran’s father was the selection of Karun Nair over his son.
He said Nair was chosen in the India squad despite not featuring in any of the domestic tournaments where Easwaran had been picked and performed.
"People said he didn't perform in two India A matches during the last tour of Australia and didn't get into the team, which is fair enough," said Ranganathan.
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"But Karun Nair wasn't in the team during the period when Abhimanyu performed before the BGT. Karun wasn't picked for the Duleep Trophy or the Irani Trophy," he added.
He further questioned how the two could even be compared when Abhimanyu has been part of the system, performed across formats, and yet has been overlooked.
"Then how do they even compare? I don't understand. They gave a chance to Karun Nair. Fair enough, he scored 800-plus runs. The selectors have put faith in him," he added.
Is IPL performance affecting fair selection in Test cricket?
Another concern raised was how some players are getting into the Test team based mainly on IPL performances. He believes long-format selections should strictly be based on domestic red-ball tournaments like Ranji Trophy and Duleep Trophy.
"My son looks a little depressed, but that is bound to happen. Some players jump the gun based on IPL performances which earn them a spot in the Test team,"
"IPL performances should not be counted while selecting the team for the longest format. Ranji Trophy, Duleep Trophy, and Irani Trophy should be the basis for Test selection," he concluded.
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As of now, India is playing the final Test against England and Abhimanyu Easwaran is watching from the sidelines.