"My son looks a little depressed"- Out of favour Indian player's father makes huge statement amid ENG vs IND 2025 Test

Abhimanyu Easwaran's father, Ranganathan Easwaran, has said that the Indian batter looked a bit depressed owing to not getting a chance to play for the country. He feels that some players had leaped above his son and played for India based on their performances in the Indian Premier League (IPL).

He added that IPL runs should not be a criterion to select players in the Test side, and performances in red-ball domestic cricket deserve to be considered. He told The Times of India:

"My son looks a little depressed, but that is bound to happen. Some players jump the gun based on IPL performances which earn them a spot in the Test team. IPL performances should not be counted while selecting the team for the longest format. Ranji Trophy, Duleep Trophy, and Irani Trophy should be the basis for Test selection".

Easwaran was first called up to the Indian Test setup for the tour to Bangladesh in December 2022. Since that call-up, as many as 15 players have made their Test debuts, the latest being Anshul Kamboj in the fourth Test against England at Old Trafford.

Prior to getting selected for the ongoing England tour, Easwaran was part of India's squad for the 2024-25 Border-Gavaskar Trophy in Australia, which the tourists lost 3-1.

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Abhimanyu Easwaran's father says he has been counting the years since his son has not made his Test debut

Abhimanyu Easwaran's father, Ranganathan Easwaran, said that he has been counting the number of years that his son has been with the Indian squad without making his Test debut. He also cited the example of Karun Nair and how he had been picked, despite not featuring in the Duleep and Irani Trophy squads. He said:

"I'm not keeping a count of the number of days that Abhimanyu has been waiting for his Test debut. I am counting the years; it has been three years now. What is the job of a player? It is to score runs. He has done that. People said he didn't perform in two India A matches during the last tour of Australia and didn't get into the team, which is fair enough."

"But Karun Nair wasn't in the team during the period when Abhimanyu performed before the BGT. Karun wasn't picked for the Duleep Trophy or the Irani Trophy. Abhimanyu scored close to 864 runs if you consider the period from last year to the current year," he said.

The 29-year-old has played 103 first-class matches for Bengal. He has scored 7841 runs at an average of 48.70 with 31 fifties and 27 hundreds. Easwaran was part of the Bengal side, which reached the Ranji Trophy final twice in 2020 and 2023, but lost to Saurashtra on both occasions.