Performance-based selection? Despite 2,051 runs in domestic cricket, no place for Mayank Agarwal in Team India

In game of Cricket, consistency is the most important. This is the only way for players to make it in the Indian side is either by consistently scoring runs or taking wickets at regular basis or doing both. Karnataka batsman Mayank Agarwal, is ruthless. Be it in Rajini Trophy or Syed Mushtaq Ali T20 Trophy or Vijay Hazare, Mayank has proven what consistency is. For long, Mayank had been straight-jacketed as a limited overs player. Even though this opened the doors to IPL and several subsequent India A tours, he had to wait patiently to break into Karnataka’s heavy-duty Ranji team.

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Interestingly, Mayank has took his season’s tally to 2051 but it was not an easy task. Mayank had a dismissal start to the season as he scored 31 in the first three innings. An encounter against Maharashtra which changed the picture of his season. Mayank didn’t looked back as he scored 304* followed by 176 ,23, 90, 133*, 173, 134, 78, in eight innings. Meanwhile, Mayank Agarwal had proven his worth in the long format till now. He also surpassed his compatriots Sreevats Goswami and Dinesh Karthik to register the most runs in a Vijay Hazare season. With the final match is in process, Agarwal has already scored 663 runs from 7 games, striking at 107.1 with 3 centuries and 3 half-centuries to boast.

Interestingly, he also broke the record for the most number of sixes hit in a single season of Vijay Hazare trophy. He also scored 1160 runs in the 2017-18 Ranji Trophy and finished the season as the most runs by a batsman.

Riding his scintillating domestic circuit form, Agarwal played a crucial role in his team’s journey. Still, he failed to get included in the Nidahas Trophy behind likes of Rishabh Pant and Deepak Hooda who are named in the upcoming Tri-nation T20I series. Meanwhile, the question arises that if BCCI’s Tri-nation T20I series’ team selection was solely based on a batsman’s shortest format abilities, where did Mayank Agarwal lost? Wasn’t he noticed?

Tough luck Mayank, next time, try scoring 2,500 runs.