The BCCI has announced the list of India’s 32 centrally-contracted cricketers on Thursday.
The biggest name missing is Suresh Raina, who till recently was a permanent member of the limited overs fixtures. Raina has not managed to remain a regular fixture in the Indian team, but his exclusion from the list has raised eyebrows.
On social media, several cricket fans questioned why Raina, who has scored 5568 runs in 223 ODI’s and 1307 runs in 65 T20I’s, was given the snub.
And now, a report in a leading English daily has claimed to reveal the real reason why the Indian board might have deemed the left-hander unfit for a central contract.
As per Mid-day that quoted a former Uttar Pradesh Ranji coach, Raina has become a ‘reluctant cricketer’ after getting married in 2015 and is apparently more focused on his family and setting up a business rather than ensuring his place in the Indian team.
The 30 year-old also skipped the domestic T20 and one-day tournaments and played in just three Ranji Trophy matches for UP this year.
“His priorities have changed after he became a family man. I have noticed that he has not been concentrating on his game. He has become a reluctant cricketer. He just played three Ranji matches for UP this season and didn’t turn out for Mushtaq Ali and Vijay Hazare tournaments,” Mid-day quoted the coach as saying on Thursday.
“With so many youngsters on the horizon, his chances of a comeback into Indian Test or ODI teams are bleak. He can still eye the T20s, but it will depend a lot on his IPL form where he will lead Gujarat Lions again,” the coach said.
