MSK & Co. seek clarity on Pandya fitness

Bengaluru, Jan. 18: Awaiting clarity on allrounder Hardik Pandya’s fitness status, the national selection committee headed by MSK Prasad will pick India’s Test and ODI teams for the New Zealand tour after a few days. The meeting was earlier tentatively scheduled for Sunday. “There isn’t going to be too much of brainstorming with regards to the team. But a fit Hardik is a necessity. The moment NCA (National Cricket Academy) gives Hardik green light to play competitive cricket, he will be an automatic choice. So the selectors will wait for a few more days,” a senior BCCI official said on the condition of anonymity.

In case Hardik fails to make it, the selectors might either look at the hitting prowess of Suryakumar Yadav since the ODIs in New Zealand will be an extension of T20s in the World Cup year.

As far as the selections are concerned, KL Rahul’s stupendous white ball form makes him a firm favourite to get his place back in the Test team. Rahul has been India’s most consistent player in T20s and ODIs but he lost his place in the Test squad after the tour of Australia.

With skipper Virat Kohli now saying that it’s difficult to leave a player like Rahul from any squad, he has better prospects than a fit-again Prithvi Shaw or Shubman Gill, who was the reserve Test opener during the home series last season.

The other change in the Test squad could be the fast-rising Navdeep Saini going as an extra pacer rather than Kuldeep Yadav as the third spinner since only one among Ravichandran Ashwin or Ravindra Jadeja will make the playing XI.

RAHUL INSPIRED BY SMITH AND WILLIAMSON He is most comfortable to bat as an opener but to deliver as a middle order batsman, KL Rahul prepared for the challenge by picking the brains of modern-day great Virat Kohli apart from watching videos of Steve Smith and Kane Williamson.

“I don’t think technically I have practiced anything different. I just spoke a lot more to middle-order batsmen and watched a lot of videos. I spoke a lot to Virat (Kohli) and watched a lot of videos of Ab (De Villiers) and Steve Smith for that matter and how they build their innings,” Rahul said.

“Kane Williamson is somebody I’ve tried to go back and watch some of his videos and see how he build his innings and how they play in certain situations.” —