A 20-member India squad was announced on Thursday that will tour Sri Lanka for a white-ball series. With seniors like Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma, and Jasprit Bumrah among others in the English tour, new faces were expected to make the squad and that happened. Players like Devdutt Padikkal and Chetan Sakariya, who impressed in the now-suspended IPL were rewarded with maiden national call-ups.
But, Kolkata Knight Riders cricketer Sheldon Jackson, who was also hoping to get picked – did not. After the squad was announced, the 34-year-old dropped a ‘heartbroken’ emoticon to express his sheer grief and disappointment.
Jackson, who plays for Saurashtra, is one of the four players to score more than 750 runs in a single edition of the Ranji Trophy four times. Despite his brilliance in the domestic circuit, he has not made the cut, and hence he is bound to feel that way.
In the past, he has opened up on being overlooked from the national scheme of things.
“I’m 34. If I’m performing well, better than a 22-23-year-old, where is it written in the laws of the game that you’re not eligible to get picked for the national team? Who are those people judging you, and on ability are they judging you? By Ranji score? Fitness?” Jackson told to Cricket Next.
In 76 first-class, 60 List A, and 59 T20s, Jackson has notched 5634, 2096, and 1240 runs respectively with 27 centuries and 44 half-centuries.
