Delhi Capitals co-owner questions India’s selection policy on Ravichandran Ashwin, Rishabh Pant

Parth Jindal questioned the absence of Ashwin from the shorter formats and blamed Team India for having an ‘aversion to wicket-takers’

Delhi Capitals co-owner Parth Jindal took to Twitter to question Indian cricket team’s selection policy on Ravichandran Ashwin and Rishabh Pant after they were blanked 3-0 in the recently concluded ODI series against New Zealand. Both Ashwin and Pant will represent Delhi Capitals in the upcoming edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL). Jindal questioned the absence of Ashwin from the shorter formats and blamed Team India for having an ‘aversion to wicket-takers’.“Don’t know why @ashwinravi99 is not in this team! There seems to be an aversion to wicket-takers! After whitewashing the kiwis in T20’s the Kiwis showing India that the semi-final victory in the World Cup was no fluke. India needs wicket-takers and players with X factor,” Jindal wrote on Twitter.

A file photo of Rishabh Pant. (ANI)

“And why carry @RishabhPant17 only for him to warm the bench? Surely he would have benefited from playing against New Zealand A or domestic cricket? To see a player as talented as him not play the 5th T20 and now the 3rd ODI makes no sense #Xfactor,” wrote Jindal in a later tweet.

Henry Nicholls scored a gritty 80 off 103 balls while Colin de Grandhomme scored a quick-fire 58 off just 28 deliveries to guide New Zealand to a comfortable five-wicket victory over India in the third ODI encounter in Mount Maunganui on Tuesday. Chasing 297, Nicholls and Guptill (66) provided a brilliant foundation for the Kiwis and a late onslaught by Tom Latham and de Grandhomme was enough to clinch the encounter.

READ: Harbhajan names Mayank’s opening partner in NZ Tests

As a result, New Zealand finished a 3-0 whitewash in the series - something India have not faced since 1989. The last time India lost all the matches in an ODI series (min 3 matches) was back in ‘89 against West Indies.