India captain Rohit Sharma on Monday made it very clear that to play for the national team in Tests, cricketers have to show hunger and dedication or else they won't be picked.
Rohit was speaking after India's 5-wicket win over England in the Ranchi Test which helped the hosts taken an unbeatable 3-1 lead in the five-match series.
He said that there is no point in picking players in the Indian team if they are not hungry about the traditional format of the game.
"Dekho, jinko Test Cricket ki bhook nahi hain, wo dekh ke hi pata chal jata hain. Un sabko khilane ka kya faida phir? (See, the one who doesn't have hunger to play Tests can be seen, what's the meaning of playing them)," the 36-year-old said at the post-match press conference at the JSCA Stadium.
Row over Iyer & Kishan's situation
Rohit's remarks come amid the controversy surrounding the absence of Ishan Kishan and Shreyas Iyer from the Indian Test squad.
While Kishan hasn't been considered for selection since he decided to take a personal break due to mental fatigue from the tour of South Africa in December, 2023.
Kishan, Iyer pay the price for not playing Ranji Trophy
The wicketkeeper-batter landed himself in further trouble after he refused to play in the Ranji Trophy for Jharkhand and instead, opted to train for the upcoming Indian Premier League (IPL 2024) with Hardik and Krunal Pandya in Baroda.
Iyer on the other hand, was dropped from the Test squad after his flop shows in the first two matches against England. Even he refused to turn up for Mumbai in the Ranji Trophy after citing a back injury as the reason.
But the National Cricket Academy (NCA) in its report to the BCCI stated that Iyer doesn't have any new injury and was cleared to play.
BCCI makes it mandatory to play red-ball cricket
The Indian cricket board is reportedly miffed with these players choosing the IPL over the domestic cricket to regain their form and fitness.
The BCCI has therefore, made it mandatory for centrally contracted cricketers to play red-ball domestic cricket if asked by the Indian team management or the selectors.
