Legendary Sunil Gavaskar on Sunday urged Indian batters to play in the Ranji Trophy without offering any excuses to iron out technical deficiencies that led to their peril in two successive series against New Zealand and Australia. Gavaskar said it was worrying to see the Indian batters churning out underwhelming efforts against New Zealand at home and in the just-concluded series against Australia Down Under. India succumbed to the Kiwis 0-3 before surrendering to the Aussies 1-3. "On January 23, there is the next round of the Ranji Trophy. Let's see how many players from this squad play. There should be no excuse for not being able to play," Gavaskar told Star Sports.
"If you do not play those matches, Gautam Gambhir will have to take a few tough decisions against those who are not available for the Ranji Trophy," he added.
"Gambhir should be saying: ‘You do not have that commitment. We need commitment. You are not playing. Whatever you want to do, do it. But for Indian cricket, you cannot return to the Test squad." Gavaskar said flaws have crept into Indian batsmen's approach because of not playing domestic cricket on available opportunities.
"What I saw were technical deficiencies. If you have been making the same mistakes, and I am not just talking about this series—I am talking about the New Zealand series as well—what did you do against New Zealand in India?"
Gavaskar said domestic cricket assumes importance in view of the upcoming 2025-2027 WTC cycle.
"And that's why, now, because the next cycle will start in June, we have not qualified for the World Test Championship. From now on, we should be ready for it. If we have to take tough decisions, then we will have to take them," he said.
With the next WTC cycle in focus, Gavaskar said India should now focus more on young cricketers such as Yashasvi Jaiswal and Nitish Kumar Reddy.
"They are hungry to earn a name for India and themselves. Such players are needed. You need such players who will protect their wicket like their life," he noted.
"That's why I'm interested that on January 23, in the Ranji Trophy matches, who will play? I want to see that.
"Because at that time, there will be T20 matches against England. But those who are not playing T20, will they play Ranji Trophy matches or not?" he said.