Indian Test team selection: Gautam Gambhir hits back at Sanjay Manjrekar's allegation

Dubai: The controversy over India’s Test squad for the England tour has deepened, with head coach Gautam Gambhir offering a curt response to criticism around the omission of Sarfaraz Khan and Shreyas Iyer.

“I am not a selector,” Gambhir told news agency PTI, breaking his silence after former cricketers questioned the logic behind India’s latest selections for India's five-Test tour of England under Shubman Gill's captaincy. The first Test begins in Headingley, Leeds, on June 20.

Gambhir’s remark came amid pointed criticism from former India batter Sanjay Manjrekar, who accused the team management and selectors of picking players based on “gut feeling” rather than recent performances.

“Under Gautam Gambhir’s stewardship and with Rohit not there anymore, I see a tendency in this management to pre-empt performances of individuals while making selections,” Manjrekar wrote in his Hindustan Times column.

“As in, the dominating thought here is to apply their own view of the likely success and failure of players depending on conditions and opposition.”

Is Manjrekar suggesting that Sarfaraz may have received stronger backing under former captain Rohit Sharma, another Mumbaikar, than from Delhi-based Gambhir? That angle adds further intrigue given that chief selector Ajit Agarkar is also from Mumbai and well-acquainted with Sarfaraz’s domestic record.

“Take the example of Sarfaraz Khan. Three fifties and a 150 at home in four Tests and failures in only four innings after that, and Sarfaraz does not get a single game in Australia,” Manjrekar added.

“For the England tour too, he has been left out despite his performances in recent times outweighing Karun Nair’s completely. So, this non-selection is not about performance. It’s about someone important in the leadership group thinking Sarfaraz will not get runs in England and Australia—and Karun Nair will.”

Veteran spinner Ravichandran Ashwin also weighed in on his YouTube channel, backing Sarfaraz and calling the omission unwarranted.

“He has performed well and did nothing to deserve being dropped,” Ashwin said. “I really hope someone has had a talk with Sarfaraz. There should be a call from the leadership or the management. He should be given reasoning and told how he can get back into the team,” he added.

“When the Indian team gets selected now, it is not pleasant anymore. Nowadays, people are almost always angry over someone not getting selected.”

Also missing from the squad is Shreyas Iyer, who was India’s top run-scorer during their victorious Champions Trophy campaign in Dubai. The Mumbai batter, who has led Punjab Kings to the top of the Indian Premier League table, had made a strong start to his Test career with a century on debut but has since struggled against short-pitched bowling. He was left out of the Australia tour after a poor home series against England and hasn’t been recalled despite the retirement of Virat Kohli.

In their place, the selectors have opted for Gujarat Titans opener Sai Sudharsan — currently leading the Orange Cap race — and have handed Karun Nair a recall following a strong domestic season.

With public sentiment stirred by high-profile omissions and the coach distancing himself from selection decisions, the heat around India’s Test squad shows no signs of cooling off.