Ahead of the T20I series against Bangladesh beginning October 6, the national selectors have especially chosen pace bowler Mayank Yadav and enrolled him in a special camp at the National Cricket Academy (NCA).
The camp is limited to some players including Hardik Pandya, Riyan Parag and Abhishek Sharma.A 21-year-old from Delhi, Yadav is at the NCA since the IPL because of an aggravated side strain that has become habitual to him.
Mayank burst on to the scene in the last IPL as he clocked over 156 kmph in his first two matches. Under the chairmanship of Ajit Agarkar, the selection committee has not seized up any plane as they look into the future and establish the regime of quick bowlers.
“There has been no complaint of pain coming from Mayank for the month or so. He is pitching full throttle at the NCA. The selectors are quite eager to look at how much he is ready for International Cricket. Because of the long Test season approaching, there is an urgency for the selectors to experiment with new bodies for the Bangladesh T20Is. For the last nearly two months, Pandya has been away from the field for any competitive cricket action. Even Abhishek needs some quality practice too,” a BCCI official disclosed.
The selectors are likely to rest Test specialists for the T20I series thereby creating a chance for the teams to experiment their squads with young talent keeping in view the T20 World Cup in 2026.
TOI has learnt that a roadmap for Mayank’s NCA team’s suggestions for a return has already been mapped out. At this time, he has been advised to commence T20 cricket training.
He has still not been given the nod to participate and play for Delhi this year Ranji Trophy. ‘Mayank bowls around 20 overs within three spells of white ball cricket throughout the day. When selectors return from their camp in Bangladesh, there is a good chance they would give him a spot in the squad for the series. Agarkar is due in Bengaluru for the opening of the new NCA – the source said.
Mayank may not have the permit for the Ranji Trophy but there are indications that the selectors may seek to board him with the Indian squad for the three Tests Series at Home against NewZeland next month.
“They don’t want this guy to be limited to one format, that is T20,” he said. “For this reason they wish to watch how he develops. Gautam Gambhir, the head coach of India and Morne Morkel, the bowling coach have been complimentary about Mayank during their tenure with the Lucknow Super Giants,” the applicant stated.
With Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Siraj set to sit out the whole T20I series, it is likely Arshdeep Singh would spearhead the harming. Other names include Avesh Khan, Khaleel Ahmed, Mukesh Kumar and Harshit Rana’s names are also among the options.
