The Indian team management may consider the Yo-Yo test to be sacrosanct but the selection fiasco of Ambati Rayudu is not lost on CoA Chief Vinod Rai, who is likely to ask BCCI why it should be the only fitness parameter for national selection. Rayudu emerged one of the highest run-getters (602 runs) in the last edition of the IPL but was dropped from the Indian squad after flunking the YoYo test. It sparked off a debate on what is pre-requisite – skill or fitness.
“Yes, the CoA chief is aware about the recent discussions. He hasn’t interfered till now as it was a technical matter. But in the coming week, he plans to get a holistic information from head of Cricket Operations Saba Karim,” a senior BCCI official, closely working with CoA told.
“Mr Rai is aware about the Rayudu and Sanju Samson case. He knows that there are contrarian views about how much importance should be given to the test. It’s not decided but he might ask for a presentation from NCA trainers about this particular test,” the official said.
BCCI treasurer Aniruddh Chaudhry has also written a six-page letter to CoA, questioning as to how and when YoYo test became the sole fitness criteria for selection.
“This raises serious questions about functioning of the selection process at the moment since a player who has done exceedingly well in the IPL against best of international bowling and thereafter attended NCA to work further on his strength and conditioning is selected and is then declared unfit and hence replaced,” Chaudhry wrote in his letter to CoA.
