Shubman Gill or KL Rahul: A cricket selection masterclass with the 'instinct' man Sanjay Jagdale

It was around 1:30 pm when former First-Class cricketer, BCCI office bearer and senior selector Sanjay Jagdale was done with his gym session at the Holkar Stadium in Indore. It’s a routine he has been following for a long time now and the gym session is preceded by a regular visit to the Yeshwant Club which is right opposite the cricket stadium.

Hard to miss Jagdale in a crowd as he patiently sat in the canteen area of the stadium. Still dressed in the gym gear – T-shirt, shorts and training shoes – the 72-year-old looked supremely fit and was waiting for his cup of tea, without sugar.

The tea arrived and with every sip, a story from his days as BCCI administrator and selector was shared. He would speak at length about how things used to be back in his day and shared his take on the “professionals” being roped in as selectors these days. He would talk about the next generation of Indian players and why it’s important to select teams with past, present and future in mind. As per him, everything must be taken care of and the obsession with runs and numbers is not necessarily required.

“(click of the tongue with a nod of disapproval) Stats and numbers are not necessarily required. I mean to a certain extent yes but those can’t be your everything. He scored here, there. So much numbers not needed. Just ask the simple question: ‘Is this player going to be my future?’. If yes, then go ahead with it, listen to the instinct and go for it,” says Jagdale, who served as Indian selector from 2000 to 2007, in a freewheeling chat with News18 CricketNext.

Future plans are key

Stats teams around the country are right now dishing numbers out to bat for Shubman Gill’s inclusion in the third Test vs Australia and the case against KL Rahul is only getting stronger by the day. While Rohit Sharma was tight-lipped on match eve, Jagdale strongly feels Gill is the right choice, and he backs his choice with another story.

“I have only watched Gill bat on TV but he has looked good, very good. For me, if a player has scored in Australia he has to be in every team. Simple. Format, this format, that format, it doesn’t work like that, if a player has quality to do well in Australia, he should be in your Playing XI straight away. And just look at Gill, how young he is. He is only going to get better and is going to serve the country for a long time. Again, if you are picking a player today, make sure he is part of the future plans,” says Jagdale.

If he plays, Indore Test would be the first time Jagdale will watch him bat from a venue but he has been hearing about Gill’s talent right from his junior days in Punjab. Just when he was about to share that story, a couple of office bearers from the Haryana Cricket Association arrive to meet him. Jagdale politely greets the two before relaxing back into his chair and returning to the Gill story.

“I remember getting a call from Karsan Ghavri who was long time back handling a fast bowlers camp or academy with the Punjab team. Ghavri would tell me how this young boy (Gill) would pad up and face those bowlers with ease. Jo bhi bowler waaha the, Ghavri made Gill play all of those,” says Jagdale.

Through the course of this nearly an hour-long interaction, Jagdale would share anecdotes from his time as a selector and administrator. He was a widely respected BCCI administrator and served as the secretary of the Indian cricket board from 2011 to 2013. He would constantly remind why instinct has to play a major role while picking teams.

“For me it was simple. See the player and if you like him just go with your instinct and have a clear dialogue with everyone. I clearly remember the selection of Harbhajan Singh before the famous series against Steve Waugh’s Australia. Not everyone was on the same page back then but Sourav wanted him and the moment I saw him in the nets, I was convinced too,” recalls Jagdale.

“We saw a future match-winner in Harbhajan moment we saw him in the nets and look what he did in that series and for the country in years to come,” he adds.

The Dhoni touch

Jagdale was part of the Dilip Vengsarkar-led panel which appointed Dhoni the captain for 2007 T20 World Cup in South Africa. India went on to win the title and it was the first of the many ICC trophies Dhoni would go on to lift as captain of the country, across formats. Jagdale had been hearing about Dhoni from his U-19 days, in the Cooch Behar Trophy for Bihar.

“I remember getting calls about this boy from Bihar who hits the ball hard. I mean he didn’t score big (84) in that Cooch Behar Trophy final vs Punjab but whatever he scored, it was said that this boy hits the ball very hard and is an effective wicketkeeper,” says Jagdale.

Rest they say is history as Dhoni went on to play the various zone tournaments, featured in the A series where he did really well and then finally made his debut for the country in 2004 ODIs against Bangladesh.

The obsession with numbers, stature

India is a country obsessed with numbers and the cricketing ecosystem continues to be stat-driven. Season after season, players continue to dish out 1000s of runs in the domestic circuit and then wait for the opportunity to come their way. For Jagdale, it was never about the numbers obsession, and more about what he saw in the player. The tea has now reached the half-way mark and the former selector talks about the basic ingredients a selector needs to have.

“Honesty, integrity, clear thinking and good communication. Simple. That’s it. No more no less. It’s not that selectors don’t have difference of opinion with the team management, coaches or selectors. I have had my share of cricketing differences with both Sourav (Ganguly) and John Wright. But one must respect everybody’s opinion and think for the betterment of cricket and players. Yes, I did have good relationship with everyone and that helped but again, that is not everything right” says Jagdale.

Jagdale was part of selection panels which were chaired by heavyweights Chandu Borde, Brijesh Patel, Syed Kirmani, Kiran More and Dilip Vengsarkar. Nowadays, the bigger names are missing from the selection panel so is there a need to have a chairman or probably selector with stature?

“Not really, why? A person must know his basics and be very clear about thought process. Only that is required. Nothing guarantees success. Selection has become a professional job now with people getting a good amount of money. Is there a guarantee that a person who has played more matches for India or at First-Class will do a better job than the one who hasn’t?” adds Jagdale.

Jagdale’s tea was now finished and he exchanged pleasantries with more office-bearers who would come to the canteen for food. This author, too, had a look at the generous buffet spread but no non-vegetarian option was the cue to take leave with a bagful of stories and anecdotes from a decorated BCCI administrator and former selector.

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