Indian cricketers will only be ârecognised and respectedâ if they play all three formats, reveals Wasim Jaffer
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Following his retirement, Wasim Jaffer revealed that Indian cricketers will only be recognised and respected in the country if they play all three formats of the game. He also added that players such as Rahul Dravid and VVS Laxman did not get their share because of being one-formatted.
The former Mumbai opener who called time to his illustrious career spanning 24 years, where he has scored 20,000 runs admitted that cricketers in the country are only ârecognised and respectedâ if they play all three formats.Â
During his stay in the Indian team, Jaffer has played 31 Tests and only two ODIs, with both the ODIâs coming against South Africa. Jaffer pointed out the example of Saurashtraâs Cheteshwar Pujara who has become one of the mainstays in the Indian Test line-up for the same.Â
âYou will be recognised and respected only if you fit in all three formats. I am not saying (Cheteshwar) Pujara is not respected, but then obviously he is going to play only Test cricket and no other format,â Jaffer was quoted as saying by cricket.com.
The opener went on to add that even the likes of Rahul Dravid and VVS Laxman despite having a decade long career for the national team did not get the value they deserved. He also believes that T20 cricket has taken so much prominence from the five-day and the ODI format of the game.Â
âI think the time has changed. Even in my time I feel a lot of players like Rahul Dravid or VVS Laxman, I donât think they got their value. A player playing with them in a Test match knows how important those players are. But you know we have to go with the time. A lot of importance is given to T20 cricket,â Jaffer added.
