Delhi coach Ajay Jadeja criticises DDCA for Ishant Sharma selection fiasco

Ishant was initially left out of the Delhi Ranji Trophy squad only to be named later on

Former Indian cricketer and current coach of the Delhi Ranji Trophy team, Ajay Jadeja, criticised the Delhi & Districts Cricket Association (DDCA) for the fiasco surrounding the selection of Ishant Sharma, ESPNCricinfo reports.

Ishant was initially left out of the 15-memebr squad for Delhi’s upcoming season with selectors claiming that the lanky fast bowler had failed to respond to their calls. The furore that followed the announcement forced the selectors to make a U-turn and name Ishant in the squad.

Jadeja, who was recently appointed as the new head coach of the Delhi team, feels a lack of communication had led to the matter getting escalated and believes the concerned officials should have handled the issue much better.

"I think we need to get better at communicating with the media and putting out clearer statements and making life easier for the media, so that they can have the right story and have one person talk about it," Jadeja told ESPNcricinfo. "For the players, there should not be pressure on them to reply to the media or even for the selectors.”

“We need to get better at communication, but every story that I have read says the same thing. The headlines keep changing, the stories say the same thing - that when he is ready, he will walk in. I don't think anyone who has played the game or been around the game would question that. Which team in India would not like Ishant to play for them if he is available?"

It is not the first time the DDCA have received flak for their administration (or lack of it) with a number of high-profile incidents putting the Delhi team in the spotlight for all the wrong reasons. Former skipper Virender Sehwag left the team over the summer after deciding to play for Haryana in the upcoming season while the DDCA officials had submitted three different probables lists before the final squad was put out.

The appointment of Gautam Gambhir as skipper and Jadeja himself as coach was confirmed after much speculation. Jadeja though expressed hope that such issues were behind them and is looking forward to gelling with his new team.

"Since it (Delhi) is the capital, it is always in the news, mostly not for the right reasons but fortunately till now I was given an offer to work with the team a few days ago," he said. "I must confess that I haven't faced a problem till now. The team has been picked by three selectors who are chosen by the government. I have been gratified by the association. I heard that there were three teams that were first put out but at the moment, things are looking good and that is what we hope," Jadeja said.

Jadeja confident of success with young side

Jadeja believes Gambhir is the ideal man to lead Delhi

Several experienced players including all-rounder Rajat Bhatia was left out of the team with the selectors opting to pick a youthful looking side. Jadeja offered his full backing to the decision made by the selectors stating that it was easier to coach the younger players rather than the experienced ones.

"For any coach, when you have young players coming in, their mindset or game plans are not set. It is easier to mould someone who is young and does not have set ideas," he said. "I think it becomes easier for a coach when you have someone who is 18, 19 or 20, and not too experienced. It is easier to chat and talk to them because they are open to ideas whereas all of us who get old and are coming towards the end of our careers, have made up our mind that this is our limit, this is the way I play and I don't want to tread a new path and I know what I am doing."

Jadeja is fully confident that the team led by Gambhir can perform well and is aiming for nothing less than the title.

"He (Gambhir) has always been the man who leads the team and he will be the man who leads this Delhi team as well because, whether it be KKR [Kolkata Knight Riders] or the time he led India, he likes to lead from the front," Jadeja said. "I would be sitting on the backseat with a hat on top and, if needed, I'll guide him, but he is the man in charge,” he said.

"Whether we win the Ranji Trophy at the end of the season remains to be seen but the only aim of anybody who walks into that dressing room is to win the Ranji Trophy because we are not here to participate, we are here to win. That is what I, my captain and each of us believe and that is why we are going to the ground every morning and trying to do the best we can," Jadeja added