Kolkata (West Bengal): There was a time when all top cricketers had to turn up for their respective state teams come what may. But with time, the matter skipped the attention of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) mandarins and players were getting away with not playing the 'all-important' Ranji Trophy.
However, no more. The BCCI, via its selectors headed by former India pacer Ajit Agarkar, is en-route to making it mandatory for the national side players to represent their states in the domestic circuit whenever there is a window of opportunity.
"Yes, the national team players will have to take part in the Ranji Trophy if they don't have country assignments," a top BCCI official confirmed to ETV Bharat on Wednesday.
"If any player skips any state assignment without a reason, he will not be considered for India selection," the official added.
The situation was warranted after a few players like wicket-keeper batter Ishan Kishan and Mumbaikar Shreyas Iyer skipped playing for the state teams in the premier domestic tournament Ranji Trophy but were apparently busy doing promotional and other work. This didn't go down well with the BCCI and the selectors.
Asked whether that's the reason for Kishan and Iyer's exclusion from the squad to take on Afghanistan in the three-match T20 series scheduled to start on Thursday at home, the source refused to divulge more.
"It's not like that... a few players have been warned and told categorically to feature in the domestic tournaments in order to get picked for the national side in the future," he added.
It may be recalled that Ishan Kishan and Shreyas Iyer failed to find slots in the squad which will take on Afghans at home. Rohit Sharma has been picked to lead the side in the absence of Hardik Pandya and Suryakumar Yadav, who are out of the reckoning as they are nursing injuries.
It is believed that the players have been given examples of batting maestro Sachin Tendulkar and former India captain Sourav Ganguly about their participation in domestic tournaments. "Even players of the stature of Tendulkar and Ganguly regularly played domestic cricket soon after finishing national team assignments. So why won't the current crop of players?," the official clarified.
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