Team India head coach Rahul Dravid advises Shreyas Iyer and Ishan Kishan to stay fit and play cricket in the aftermath of their BCCI contract snubs. Both the stars were missing from the board’s central contract list. The head coach broke his silence on their snubs and offered them some valuable advice.
Dravid’s advise for Ishan Kishan, Shreyas Iyer
Speaking at the post-match press conference, Dravid explains that he doesn’t know or decide on the contracts. He opines that both Kishan and Iyer are in the mix. He advises them to stay fit, play cricket and force selectors to pick them.
“I don’t decide contracts or discuss that. I don’t even know what the criteria is. Both are in the mix and hope they play cricket, stay fit and force the selectors to pick them. No one is out of contention, players without contracts have also played,” Dravid said.
Latest cricket news updates
Why was Ishan Kishan axed?
Ishan Kishan pulled out of South Africa series citing mental fatigue. While that did not sit well with the BCCI, Ishan repeatedly ignored calls to play in Ranji Trophy.
He had a chance to come back to the Test team with KS Bharat struggling. But with no domestic cricket to back his claims, Ishan was snubbed.
And as a result, he is out of the BCCI Central Contract. Last year, Ishan was in Grade C.
Why was Shreyas Iyer axed?
As for Shreyas Iyer, it’s tricky. He was an all format player till last year. He was a regular in Test, ODI and T20I depending upon his fitness.
But after he was dropped from the Test squad after a string of disappointing performances, he complained of back spasm and skipped Mumbai’s Ranji Trophy match.