After a standout season in the Indian Premier League (IPL), Rajasthan Royals batsman Riyan Parag has been rewarded with an India call-up for the upcoming T20I series against Zimbabwe. Parag was the third highest run-scorer in IPL 2024 with 573 runs in 16 matches. Despite discussions about his selection for the T20 World Cup, Parag did not get a place in the squad for the tournament, which India won by beating South Africa in the final.
After being ignored by the selectors, Parag stated that he will not watch the World Cup, saying he would only like to play in one.
“Actually, I’m not going to watch it. I’ll just watch the final. I don’t want to watch cricket anymore because I want to play in the World Cup. I think it’s a good feeling. I want to play in the World Cup, play for the country. When I see these people, I get motivated. But then, I feel like I could have done something else. I’m missing something and I just want to go out there and break some balls,” Parag said during a chat on TRS Podcast.
However, after his selection for the Zimbabwe series, former Indian pacer S Sreesanth criticized the youngster for his comments.
“Some young people also said that they will not watch the World Cup because they were not selected. I would say first you should be a patriot, then you should be a cricket lover. , you should be a cricket lover, but those who selected the team should be supported with all their heart, mind and passion,” Sreesanth said on Star Sports.
Meanwhile, Shubman Gill will lead the Indian cricket team in the absence of Rohit Sharma for the upcoming T20I series against Zimbabwe. The team traveled to Zimbabwe right after the 2024 T20 World Cup, where they will play 5 T20I matches between July 6th and 14th.
India squad for T20I series against Zimbabwe: Ꮪhubman Gill (captain), Yashasvi Jaiswal, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Abhishek Sharma, Rinku Singh, Sanju Samson, Dhruv Jurel, Nitish Reddy, Riyan Parag, Washington Sundar, Ravi Bishnoi, Avesh Khan, Khaleel Ahmed, Mukesh Kumar, Tushar Deshpande.
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