Indian skipper Shubman Gill dismissed suggestions that veteran all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja was dropped for the third and final ODI against the West Indies, clarifying that the move was purely part of the team’s workload management and testing bench strength. As per Gill, India had wrapped up the three-match series in the first two games, prompting the team management to opt to rest senior players to test depth options, such as pace-all-rounder Nitish Kumar Reddy and debutant Anshul Kamboj, ahead of next year’s World Cup. Speaking on the decision to rest Jadeja for the final game, Gill emphasised the difficulty of providing game time to fringe players in brief bilateral series.
“I don’t think Jaddu bhai was dropped,” Gill said in the press conference after the 3rd ODI on Saturday. “We made him rest because we had the opportunity to give other players game time today. When a series is just three matches long, it becomes very difficult to give experience to players sitting on the bench.”
Gill was also asked about how the team management plans to handle the upcoming selection squeeze once all three primary spin-all-rounders – Ravindra Jadeja, Axar Patel, and Washington Sundar – are fully available. He said that the decisions will be aligned strictly with team combination requirements and World Cup conditions.
“Going forward, selectors and our management will have detailed discussions,” Gill explained when asked about Jadeja’s absence in the press conference. “Whatever we feel is best for the team-keeping the World Cup in mind-the player who provides maximum value with their specific skill set in those conditions will be prioritised for the squad.”
The final match of the series, also dead-rubber, also saw experimentation in the seam department. After Jammu & Kashmir pacer Auqib Nabi made his debut in the earlier game, Haryana pacer Anshul Kamboj was handed his maiden ODI cap in New Chandigarh. Despite tough bowling conditions on flat pitches, Gill reiterated the management’s trust in young talent.
“Both Anshul and Auqib are players who will remain in our pool moving forward. With Prasidh Krishna injured, it gave us an opening to test different options with the series already won. Anshul is someone who can bat at number eight, which is a crucial spot for us. We want to see who can deliver under pressure when given the opportunity.”
The captain concluded that building depth at number eight, where players like Kamboj and Nabi possess lower-order batting ability, remains a central pillar of India’s ODI construction.
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