VIZAG — Former India batter Sanjay Manjrekar criticized the Board of Control for Cricket in India’s selection panel for including Rohit Sharma in the ODI squad for the three-match series against Afghanistan while leaving out Yashasvi Jaiswal and Sai Sudharsan. Manjrekar questioned the logic and vision behind the decision during an appearance on Sportstar’s Insight Edge podcast in May 2025.

Manjrekar pointed to the recent ODI performances of the two omitted batters, noting that Sai Sudharsan has recorded three fifties in four innings for India, while Yashasvi Jaiswal scored an unbeaten 116 in his last ODI appearance against South Africa in Vizag in December. Jaiswal has played four ODIs overall and accumulated 171 runs. "Sai Sudharsan has three fifties in four innings for India in ODI cricket. Yashasvi Jaiswal’s last innings was an unbeaten 116. And yet, these guys are not playing for India. Instead, the selectors have gone with a veteran whose fitness is a question mark and who is clearly out of form. Now explain that to me. What is the logic behind it? What is the vision?" he said.

He argued that India should prioritize building a team for the 2027 ODI World Cup, especially given that Rohit Sharma will be nearing age 39 and has already participated in three ODI World Cups. India has not won a 50-over World Cup since 2011. While acknowledging that Virat Kohli still justifies his place in the side due to form and fitness, Manjrekar said the same cannot be said for Sharma.

"If they were compelled to make a compromise and pick Rohit Sharma for whatever reasons, then the first thing they should do is pick up the phone, call Jaiswal and apologise. This is a young player who has done tremendous things at the toughest level in Test cricket. He is just 24 years old, in his prime, with a bright future ahead of him. The same goes for Sai Sudharsan. Guys like Gill, Sudharsan and Jaiswal are tailor-made to be India’s top three in ODI cricket."

"Everybody knows what the right thing to do is. When you look at numbers and try to justify the selection, that’s not really the job. The job is to do what’s best for Indian cricket going forward. Is Rohit Sharma going to be your key player for the next 50-over World Cup in the years ahead? That’s the question that needs to be asked. Or would you rather give that opportunity right now to a Yashasvi Jaiswal or a Sai Sudharsan?"

"And the players we are talking about here have already played multiple World Cups. India, meanwhile, haven’t won a 50-over World Cup since 2011. Whichever way I look at it, you have got to move on. With Virat Kohli, I can maybe understand it because there is still form, fitness and everything else going in his favour. But a selector’s job is not just about thinking of Virat Kohli or Rohit Sharma. They also have to think about the 50 or 100 other players who are fighting for an opportunity to play for India."