"I am not for it" - WV Raman questions Cheteshwar Pujara's omission from India's Test squad for West Indies tour

WV Raman has questioned Cheteshwar Pujara's omission from India's Test squad for the West Indies tour.

India face the Windies in a two-match Test series, with the first game to be played in Roseau from July 12. The selectors ignored Pujara in the 16-member squad they recently picked for their first series of the new World Test Championship cycle.

In a video shared on Aakash Chopra's YouTube channel, Raman cast his vote against Pujara's exclusion:

"The problem is that they have picked four possible openers, and they have dropped Pujara, which is another bone of contention. A cricketer like Pujara has done a lot for Indian cricket, and he has been instrumental for India winning both at home and abroad on quite a few occasions."

The former India opener added:

"He is a gritty customer. He was even elevated to vice-captaincy quite recently but a failure in the WTC final, he finds that he is left out in the cold. I think this is one decision that has not gone down well with many people, and I, personally, as well, I am not for it."

Cheteshwar Pujara scored 90 and an unbeaten 102 in his two innings of the first Test against Bangladesh in December last year. However, he managed just one half-century in his next ten innings and was ignored for the West Indies tour after his twin failures in the WTC final against Australia.

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"He deserves to be treated properly" - WV Raman on Cheteshwar Pujara

Cheteshwar Pujara has reportedly been told that the door is not yet closed on him.

WV Raman reckons Cheteshwar Pujara should have been treated better, especially if it's the end of the road for him:

"He deserves to be treated properly. In the event, if they think it's the end of Pujara, he could have been given a better exit, but that's how things happen sometimes, and this is not the first case again. There are a lot of precedences as far as this kind of treatment is concerned."

The former head coach of the Indian women's team reckons either Shubman Gill or Ruturaj Gaikwad might bat at No. 3 against the West Indies:

"The presumption is that out of the four openers, they would probably utilise one at No. 3. Whether it's Gill or Ruturaj Gaikwad remains to be seen. That is once again not explicitly stated, and that again creates a little bit of a grey area for people who are keen to know things."

Rohit Sharma and Shubman Gill opened for India in the WTC final. The think tank might look to bat either Gaikwad or Yashasvi Jaiswal at the top of the order alongside the Indian captain if they feel Gill could be a long-term option at No. 3.