Sunil Gavaskar : Why is BCCI allowing players to skip domestic cricket?

India had a very good series against the Windies and enjoyed a 1-1 draw against Australia in the recently concluded T20I series last month as well. The success of the Indian team meant that selectors could afford to tweak the squads in different formats and offer rest to some of the more senior players in the team. MS Dhoni was not included in the series against West Indies and was also overlooked for the T20I series against Australia. Shikhar Dhawan was adjudged as man of the series in the three-match series against Aaron Finch & Co. but was not added to the Test squad.

However, Sunil Gavaskar questioned the attitude of the BCCI officials and selectors after Dhoni and Dhawan opted against participating in the ongoing Ranji Trophy season for their respective state teams.

"We shouldn't ask Dhawan and Dhoni 'Why you are not playing domestic cricket?'. We should, in fact, ask the BCCI and selectors why are they allowing players to skip domestic cricket when they are not on national duty. If the Indian team has to do well, players have to be in prime form and for that they have to play cricket," Gavaskar told IndiaToday.

Dhoni, who led India to World Cup triumphs in 2007 T20 World Cup and 2011 50-over World Cup, hasn't played long-form cricket since his Test retirement in 2014. The CSK captain was dropped from India's T20I squad for the series against Windies and Australia, which was the first time that he was dropped since his international debut in 2004. Meanwhile, Dhawan isn't part of the Test squad in Australia and is currently in Melbourne, where he resides during the off-season. 

Gavaskar is adamant that the out-of-favor batsmen need to play more in the domestic circuit during the off-season in order to find their form. Dhoni could next feature in the three ODIs against Tim Paine & Co. in January, which will mean that he wouldn't have played any cricket over a two-month window.

"He (Dhoni) didn't play the T20Is against Australia, before that he didn't play the West Indies Tests, and then he is not playing the Test series against Australia. So, he last played in October and will next play in January, which is a huge gap. But if he doesn't do well on tours of Australia and New Zealand, then there will be more questions asked on his place in the World Cup.

"As you grow older and if there is a gap in your cricket, your reflexes will slow down. If you play any form of cricket at the domestic level, you get an opportunity to play long innings, which serves as a good practice for you," added Gavaskar.