Dinesh Karthik to replace injured Manish Pandey, but no place for Gambhir?
- Manoj Tiwary has suffered a left arm strain and is ruled out of the ICC Champions Trophy
- Dinesh Karthik has been included in the team as a replacement
- Gautam Gambhir has been snubbed again by the final selectors
FollowManish Pandey is down with a left arm strain and will have to forfeit the upcoming ICC Champions Trophy in England and Wales. Dinesh Karthik, who although has not had a spectacular IPL season, scored 607 runs for Tamil Nadu in the Vijay Hazare Trophy and impressed the selectors.
Pandey missed the first qualifier between Kolkata Knight Riders and Sunrisers Hyderabad and will also miss the crucial second qualifier against Mumbai Indians on Friday, May 19. Pandey has had a good game against Mumbai Indians this year, his highest score, 81, in IPL 2017 coming against them. Â
However, while Dinesh Karthik has included, the selectors have left out Gautam Gambhir who scored well in the Vijay Hazare Trophy and is the second highest run scorer in IPL 2017. With 486 runs in his bag and a dependable decision making capability, Gambhir deserved a spot in the India squad over Shikhar Dhawan who has had a forgettable domestic season. Although he is the third highest scorer in IPL 2017 with 479 runs, Gautam Gambhir has proven to play a better game under pressure, as was evidenced in the rain-hit first qualifier.
Even former India captain, Sourav Ganguly, was of the opinion that Gautam Gambhir should be included in the team. But the selectors have snubbed Gambhir again as they have been doing in the last four years.
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