former indian batsman Hanuma Vihari Criticized Team India management for leaving rajapatidar Withdrew from India’s T20I squad for the Zimbabwe series. Vihari feels that Patidhar deserves a place after his stellar performance and leadership at Royal Challengers Bangalore, while also questioning the overall balance of the team.However, India got off to a good start in the series as they defeated Zimbabwe by seven wickets in the first T20I at Harare Sports Club on Thursday to take a 1-0 lead in the three-match series. After restricting Zimbabwe to 125/7, India chased down the target in just 13.2 overs, thanks to a sensational half-century from 15-year-old Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, who became the youngest player to score a fifty in men’s international cricket. His 18-ball fifty included four fours and four sixes. Previously, Mayank Yadav (2/18) and Prince Yadav (2/19) headlined the squad, while India have also named concussion substitutes for specific roles for the first time, including Sujansh Shechi, Prabhusimran Singh, Harsh Dubey and Yash Thakur.
Vihari questions team balance
Vihari said the selectors took some tough decisions, especially ruling out Patidar despite having several left-handed batsmen in the squad. He feels that a right-handed batsman like Patidar or Patidar Sanzhou Samson Will bring better balance to the team.“Rinku Singh has been brought back, but where is Rajat Patidar? He led RCB to the title in two seasons and also performed well as a batsman,” the channel said.
Vihari also supports Kuldeep and Samson
Vihari also questioned the omission of experienced wrist-spinner Kuldeep Yadav and wicketkeeper-batsman Sanju Samson. He pointed out that Patidar scored 486 runs at a strike rate of 196.76 in IPL 2026 and felt that performance should be more important than age when picking the squad.“The non-selection of Kuldeep Yadav is a serious problem. He is an experienced wrist spinner. Why didn’t you field him? Also, if you didn’t want Sanju Samson to play in the Zimbabwe series, you sent Prabhsimran. Patidar got a chance.“If you have brought in a lot of players who have performed well in the IPL, then why not Patidhar? You have made the team full of left-handers. Apart from Shreyas, there are no right-handers,” he added.
