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Indian keepers need more grooming: Kirmani
The former stumper claimed there was too much experimentation with the keeper's slot.
Claiming that there was too much experimentation with the wicket-keeper's slot, former Indian stumper Syed Kirmani on Saturday said the younger crop needed "more grooming" to be able to perform at the highest level.
"A wicketkeeper has to be groomed and graduated to the side," he said.
Kirmani, who was also the chairman of the selection committee till last year, said there had been too much experimentation with the wicket-keeper's spot in the past which has not allowed the players to be groomed properly.
"The problem is that the younger lot is not being groomed properly."
Kirmani also defended the selectors decision to drop Parthiv Patel after a spate of bad performances and said the Baroda player needed more exposure in the domestic cricket.
"Patel was given enough chances but he failed to improve. You see he is still very young and needs a lot of exposure in domestic cricket," he said.
Referring to Dinesh Karthik, Kirmani said he still needed to work hard before he could make a strong claim for a permanent spot in the side.
"He is young, still under-19 and needs to get more experience."
On MS Dhoni's chances of making it to the ODI side against Pakistan, Kirmani said: "I am sure he will be there for the ODIs. He has been performing well and has domestic experience as well."
Kirmani also showered praise on Pakistani wicket-keeper Kamran Akmal for his heroic innings to lead the team's fightback in the first Test against India and said it would give a huge psychological advantage to the visitors.
"By drawing the match Pakistan will get a huge psychological boost and Kamran certainly deserves a pat on the back.
"Credit should be given to Kamran and Razzak who have steered their team to safety from a hopeless situation," he said.
Kirmani said the "young and inexperienced" Pakistani side, which was being written off had showed they had the potential to stage a comeback.
Asked how he rated 23-year-old Akmal, who made his Test debut against Zimbabwe at Harare in 2002-03, Kirmani said "now Pakistan don't have to look anywhere".
The stumper felt that inclusion of off spinner Harbhajan Singh could have made a difference in the end result.
"Given the nature of the Mohali wicket which tends to favour the seamers, we had the right composition. However, in cricket you never know which way the pendulum can swing and this game is highly unpredictable," he remarked.
