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Ravindra Jadeja (Source: X)
The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has announced the squad for the Sri Lanka series scheduled to start on July 27. Meanwhile, as per India's newly appointed head coach, Gautam Gambhir and chief selector, Ajit Agarkar, the Board hasn't dropped the star all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja from the team. He has been rested and will join the team from the following series onwards as revealed by them during the press conference.
There are two reasons behind his exclusion from the team: One is they want to see Axar Patel's performance in the T20Is, and the second one is they want Jadeja to play all 10 games in red-ball cricket ahead of the WTC Finals. However, the Board has kept Yuzvendra Chahal's selection on hold for the time being.
Also Read: 3 players who might replace Ravindra Jadeja in India's T20I squad
"There was no point in picking both Axar and Jadeja. One would have benched anyways. Jadeja is not dropped. A long Test season is coming" Agarkar said. Gambhir also added and said, "Some players missed on this Lanka tour because we have 10 Test matches coming up."
They haven't taken Kuldeep Yadav on the tour as well. Hence, nobody has any clue as to what the selectors have planned for the series. Now that Gautam Gambhir is the head coach of the team, these changes were inevitable. Moreover, India will play only six ODI games ahead of WTC Finals 2025.
Virat Kohli returns to ODI cricket in Sri Lanka series
India's head coach, Gautam Gambhir, has already started showing his skills and brains. He convinced Virat Kohli to play in the ODI series against Sri Lanka, in which the right-handed batter was about to take a rest. After talking to Gambhir, Kohli agreed to play the 3-match ODI series.
Moreover, the Board has dropped Ruturaj Gaikwad from the series, creating outrage among fans on the Internet. Gaikwad's performance in the previous series was quite good, and even after performing, he was dropped from the team. Many cricket experts have also come forward to extend their support towards Gaikwad and questioned the selectors and their selection process.