“Mumbai lobby activated” – Fans roast Sanjay Manjrekar for backing India's decision to make five changes for IND vs BAN Super 4 game

Team India made five changes in their playing XI for the Asia Cup 2023 Super 4 game and Bangladesh at the R Premadasa Stadium in Colombo on Friday, September 15.

The Men in Blue rested Virat Kohli, Hardik Pandya, Jasprit Bumrah, Kuldeep Yadav and Mohammed Siraj. In their stead, debutant Tilak Varma, Suryakumar Yadav, Prasidh Krishna, Shardul Thakur, and Mohammed Shami have been included.

Former India cricketer Sanjay Manjrekar lauded Team India's think tank for testing their bench strength in a dead rubber. He wrote on X (previously known as Twitter):

“Excellent selection by India. Makes an important statement. Shows that priority is Indian cricket, above everything else.”

Fans, though, trolled Manjrekar for his reaction. A section of supporters were unhappy with the think tank's call to make five changes, especially resting Virat Kohli for debutant Tilak Varma, who is not part of India’s squad for the 2023 ODI World Cup.

Besides skipper Rohit, Ishan Kishan, Suryakumar Yadav and Tilak Varma play for Mumbai Indians in the Indian Premier League.

One user wrote:

"Shows that priority is Mumbai lobby. If Indian cricket was priority then they wouldn't have rested Virat Kohli who's form has been up & down. He needed more game time than this guy Tilak Verma who's not even in the squad."

Here are some of the other reactions:

Team India opt to field first against Bangladesh in Super 4 game

Team India captain Rohit Sharma won the toss and opted to field first against Bangladesh. At the toss, Rohit said:

"We are gonna field first. It is something we haven't done in the tournament, we haven't done it under lights so it gives us an opportunity to bat under lights. The wicket honestly has got everything for everyone. Pacers who bend their back in the daytime have also got movement and there have been assistance for the spinners.”

He continued:

“Got to be brave and play your natural game. We got to give game time to some other guys who haven't played. We have made five changes.”

It’s worth mentioning that Team India have already qualified for the Asia Cup 2023 final against Sri Lanka on Sunday, September 17.

India XI: Rohit Sharma (c), Shubman Gill, Suryakumar Yadav, Tilak Varma, KL Rahul (w), Ishan Kishan, Ravindra Jadeja, Axar Patel, Shardul Thakur, Mohammed Shami, Prasidh Krishna.