Guwahati, May 19 (IANS) Chief selector Ajit Agarkar on Tuesday said the selectors will rely on the Indian team physio’s feedback to determine the availability of senior players Rohit Sharma and Hardik Pandya for the upcoming ODI series against Afghanistan, adding that though both are ‘on track,’ they will still be reassessed closer to the matches.
Though Rohit and Pandya are in the ODI mix, their availability for the games against Afghanistan in Dharamshala, Lucknow, and Chennai on June 14, 17, and 20, respectively, will depend on them getting fitness clearance.
Pandya, who’s nursing back spasms, has missed three matches for the Mumbai Indians since last featuring on May 2, with the five-time champions already out of the race for the playoffs. Rohit, meanwhile, has played only seven of MI’s 12 games this season after sustaining a right hamstring injury against Royal Challengers Bengaluru earlier in the tournament.
“I mean, sometimes a player knows whether he can play through it or not. I won’t be able to tell you, sitting here, whether they are playing through niggles or not. You certainly want them fit when they come and play or represent the national team.
“But that’s an area of expertise for the trainers and the physios who kind of give me the feedback on where a player is at. I mean, I am not an expert in that area. If they tell me a certain guy is fit, I’ve got to trust that person when we pick them.
“Maybe in two weeks, if we are told that those two guys haven’t quite made it fitness-wise, we’ll take a call accordingly. But at this point, I’ve been told that they are on track, and we will perhaps assess it. Now, whether they have been playing with something, I am not sure. I go by what the physio tells me, and I have full faith in what the Indian physio tells me,” said Agarkar in a virtual press conference.
On seam-bowling all-rounder Nitish Kumar Reddy, who hasn’t found a place in the ODI team despite having shown considerable progress with his bowling speeds for Sunrisers Hyderabad in IPL 2026 after having a stint with renowned fast bowling coach Steffan Jones, Agarkar said the national selection panel is keeping a close eye on him.
“It’s very important, and I think we have all seen a lot of progress. Particularly, we know he has been really good with the bat. But we have seen a lot of progress over the last few months with regard to his bowling as well. It is about giving people exposure. He is still quite young in his career, even though he might have been around since that Australia trip.
“So the more experience you give them, like you mentioned, going to South Africa, we are going to need guys, ideally, seam bowling all around us. If we can find some that will give us a little bit of balance, he certainly fits the bill.
“He is fit at this point, and we hope he stays fit because the more he plays, he is going to get better. There is no doubt about it. So he could end up being a critical part of our team if he keeps developing the way he is at this point. We are very happy with the way he is going, and over the next few months, there will be lots of games for us to give him those opportunities to keep getting better.”
On the headache of selecting teams with so many options in hand, with Prince Yadav, Gurnoor Brar, and Harsh Dubey selected in the ODI team for the first time, Agarkar said, “I don’t read what’s going on social media. So, I don’t know what’s going on.
“But obviously, the other four selectors, or the coach or captain who is involved, obviously, we have discussions and what’s the right balance for the team, whether it’s test cricket, one day or T20 cricket. So, the more options there are, the better your headache is.
“But that’s a good headache to have, rather than having fewer options. At this point, certainly in white-ball cricket, we are blessed with a lot of options. So, no, I think the job is very difficult, but in a good way because there are more options,” he concluded.
–IANS
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