Why Ayush Badoni? 5 Players Who Should Have Replaced Sundar

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Why Ayush Badoni?: A major change has been made to the Indian team ahead of the ongoing three-match ODI series between India and New Zealand. After star all-rounder Washington Sundar was ruled out due to injury, the selectors have included young player Ayush Badoni in the squad. However, this decision has sparked a new debate in Indian cricket circles.

The Selection Controversy: Why Fans are Raising Questions?

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On social media, fans are calling this decision 'biased'. Two main reasons are being cited for this:

• The Delhi Connection: Coach Gautam Gambhir and Ayush Badoni both hail from Delhi.
• The IPL Factor: Gambhir has been the mentor of Lucknow Super Giants (LSG), and Badoni has been a key player for the same team.

Fans allege that giving preference to Badoni despite his poor form in the Vijay Hazare Trophy is a result of the coach's personal preference.

Ayush Badoni's List-A and First-Class Record

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Questions are being raised about Badoni's selection based on his ODI (List-A) record, but his first-class record is quite impressive.

Format	Matches	Runs	Average	Strike Rate	Wickets
List-A (ODI)	27	693	36.47	93.27	18
First Class	21	1681	57.96	-	22
IPL	56	963	26.75	138.56	04

Badoni's average of 57.96 in the Ranji Trophy and his experience of captaining Delhi makes him a promising player for the long run, but his consistency in the ODI format is still questionable.

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5 players who could have been better options than Ayush Badoni

Fans and experts believe that these 5 players had a stronger claim as a replacement for Washington Sundar

1. Shahbaz Ahmed: He has an exceptional List-A record. 1412 runs at an average of 48.68 and 68 wickets in 57 matches. He recently scored 390 runs and took 6 wickets in the Vijay Hazare Trophy.
2. Krunal Pandya: Experienced all-rounder Krunal scored 321 runs and took 6 wickets for Baroda in the Vijay Hazare Trophy. He has considerable international experience.
3. Riyan Parag: Parag offers aggressive batting along with off-break bowling. He has an average of over 41 in List A matches.
4. Anukul Roy: This left-arm spin all-rounder scored 245 runs in 6 innings of the Vijay Hazare Trophy and also took 4 wickets.
5. Harsh Dubey: This Vidarbha player has also impressed with his bowling and batting in domestic cricket.

Why Did Team Management Pick Ayush Badoni?

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Even though there is criticism, the team management might have a solid reason for selecting Badoni. Washington Sundar is a right-arm off-spinner. The Indian team already has two left-arm spinners in Ravindra Jadeja and Kuldeep Yadav.

Most of the options mentioned above (Shahbaz, Krunal, Anukul) are left-arm spinners. Since Badoni is a right-arm off-break bowler, he fits as a 'like-for-like' replacement for Sundar.

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