BCCI choose talent over performance for Tests against New Zealand

Individuals with some excellent skill sets and the ones with some brilliant performances against their names were kept waiting, while talent was asked to jump the queue yet again when the BCCI Selection Committee sat down to select the Indian test squad for the series against New Zealand starting 22^nd September 2016 in Kanpur.

Shardul Thakur (who didn’t get a lot of chances to prove himself) and Stuart Binny (who did get a lot of chances to prove himself) were both dropped from the 17 man squad that went to the West-Indies. All of the remaining 15 were selected for the squad that is to play New-Zealand in the test series starting later this month.

Yes, the same 15, which means Rohit Sharma keeps his place, Shikhar Dhawan keeps his place and a good number of players who were knocking at the doors of the Indian test team loud enough will have to stay out for longer.

One of those players, and perhaps the one whose knocks at the Indian team’s door and at the games that he has played have been the loudest and most remarkable respectively, is Gautam Gambhir. Gambhir last played at The Oval against England in 2014 and ever since then has been yearning for a spot in the Indian test side.

When Gambhir had a poor run in 2012 against England at home, another Indian southpaw, Shikhar Dhawan was rising through the ranks quicker than Reliance Jio’s stocks. Dhawan’s blitzkrieg innings against Australia at Mohali meant that -like it happens so often- Indian cricket was ready to move past one of its most phenomenal opening batsmen in the post-Sachin-Sehwag era.

While Gambhir kept leading and scoring well for the KKR, his Ranji scores didn’t tell a happy tale, and this meant that a flight with the Indian test team kept getting farther from the KKR skipper. Incidents on the field with teammates didn’t help his cause either. But come Duleep Trophy, 2016, Gambhir has been piling on some big runs. In his last 5 innings as the skipper of India Blue, Gambhir has scored 77, 90, 59, 94 and 36.

This, in contrast with Rohit Sharma, who, in his previous 5 test innings has managed a paltry total of only 53 runs, which includes a score of 41 against the West Indies. Shikhar Dhawan’s report card depicts a marginally better picture with scores of 33, 84, 27, 26 and 1 run.

Dhawan’s last five innings – 33, 84, 27, 26 and 1 run

But, surprisingly, both of them have managed to secure a place in the Indian test side. And like that struggling actor with all the finesse of his art by his side, Gambhir watches on while the eponymous star-kids get the cut.

The rest of the Indian test squad looks in good shape and there aren’t many question marks that you can raise against any selections apart from those of Shikhar Dhawan’s and Rohit Sharma’s, especially when someone like Gambhir has been doing so well. But, shouldn’t this be the time for the Indian test side to look ahead in time?

Kuldeep Yadav has been bowling impeccably for India Red with the new pink ball and Pradeep Sangwan has been mighty impressive as well. For how long will we keep sending out a ‘no-vacancy’ message to all those youngsters performing at every level and delivering whatever is asked of them?

Isn’t it time that performances and only performances determine one’s place in the squad, irrespective of the sport being played. But, there’s a deep-rooted Indian sentiment when reputation takes on performance, we inadvertently end up rooting for reputation.

Everytime performance trumps reputation we stand in awe and praise it, but never back it. If the Indian team has to become a dominating test side, it must make sure that skill with performances against its name should not be kept waiting for long.

This series against New Zealand is another chance for talent and reputation to step up and perform, for someone who once wore with pride the same shirt of talent and reputation now wants his performances and not his reputation to earn him a place in the side.

Reputation wanes quicker in sport than it does anywhere else because when you take guard, or kick-off the game or toss the ball up to serve, it’s your abilities which take the center-stage and conjure performances. And thus your reputation is as good as that last knock, that last set or the last goal that you scored.

Let’s hope when the next time the BCCI’s selection committee sits to select an Indian squad, it considers performance over reputation, lest they want to send out the same team everytime with minor modifications and call it new. Wait, does that sound like a tech company which just launched a “new” cellphone? The jury is out.