"To just come back and straightway become vice-captain after 18 months, I don't understand" - Ganguly calls out Team India's inconsistent selection 

Former Indian captain Sourav Ganguly recently expressed his confusion over the recent selection calls taken by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) for the upcoming tour of the West Indies.

Several new faces like Ruturaj Gaikwad and Yashasvi Jaiswal received their maiden red-ball call-ups, while senior batter Cheteshwar Pujara missed out. Following his exclusion from the two-match Test series, there was a vacancy in the vice-captain role, which has now been assigned to Ajinkya Rahane.

Rahane made a spectacular return to the team on the back of a solid domestic season as well as his exploits for the Chennai Super Kings (CSK) in the winning Indian Premier League (IPL) campaign. He was arguably India's best batter during the World Test Championship (WTC) final against Australia, which has helped him retain his place in the squad.

Stating that the West Indies tour was a good chance to groom a youngster into the leadership role, Sourav Ganguly told in an interaction with PTI:

"I won't say it's a step backward. You have been out for 18 months, then you play a Test and you become a vice-captain. I don't understand the thought process behind it."

"There is Ravindra Jadeja, who has been there for a long time and a certainty in Test matches, he is a candidate," he added. "....but to just come back and straightway become vice-captain after 18 months, I don't understand. My only thing is that selection shouldn't be hot and cold. There has to be continuity and consistency in selection."

Ever since Virat Kohli's resignation as Test captain, the team have had several vice-captains switching from time to time. Prior to Pujara, it was KL Rahul with the role before his poor captaincy record in limited opportunities brought an abrupt end to the proceedings.

Speaking about Pujara's selection, Ganguly feels that it is essential to communicate the team's future vision to the player.

"Selectors should have a clear idea about him (Pujara)," Ganguly said. "Do they need him to play Test cricket anymore or do they want to continue with youngsters and communicate it to him. Somebody like Pujara can't be dropped, then picked, dropped again and then picked. Same with Ajinkya Rahane also."

While Cheteshwar Pujara has been piling on runs in the County Championship for Sussex, he has not been able to translate the same form onto the international circuit. He scored a fifty during the Border-Gavaskar series and recorded a ton during the tour of Bangladesh, but hosts a string of poor scores otherwise.

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"Even if you play IPL, you should have the ability to adjust your technique and temperament and do well in a Test match" - Sourav Ganguly

The Indian Premier League (IPL) copped a lot of blame following Team India's poor display against Australia in the WTC final. Even skipper Rohit Sharma admitted that he would have ideally liked a much bugger timeframe to prepare for the switch from white-ball to red-ball cricket.

Sourav Ganguly, however, strongly refutes the stance and feels that players should be capable of adjusting formats in a short space of time.

"Ajinkya Rahane also played IPL and he played very well during IPL and World Test Championship final," he continued. "So I don't believe in this theory. Some of the Australian boys (Cameron Green, David Warner), played well in IPL also and did well in World Test Championship."

"After IPL finished, there was enough time to acclimatise to Test cricket," Ganguly continued. "They went to England and they played. It used to happen in the past. You played ODI cricket and you played Test cricket, things used to happen very, very quickly and so I don't believe it's an issue. So I believe that even if you play IPL, you should have the ability to adjust your technique and temperament and do well in a Test match."

The upcoming ODI World Cup is the primary focus for Team India in the coming months. The team will begin their final leg of preparations with a tour of the Caribbean, followed by the Asia Cup and a home series against Australia before the headline event in the subcontinent.

Will Team India get their selection matters right after the appointment of a chief selector? Let us know what you think.