Indian legend questions selectors over Ayush Badoni's inclusion in NZ series, says 'has anyone even...'

Former World Cup winner and legend of the game, Krishnamachari Srikkanth, has questioned the selector’s panel led by Ajit Agarkar after they included Ayush Badoni in the Indian side for the remainder of the T20I series against New Zealand. With Washington Sundar ruled out of the New Zealand series, Badoni was given an SOS, meaning he joined the Indian squad as a like-for-like replacement. However, Srikkanth did not hold back and took a dig at the selectors for including Badoni in the Indian team.

Badoni’s selection slammed

“Just because he took three wickets in a game, you’re calling him an all-rounder,” Srikkanth said while criticising the inclusion of Badoni in the Indian team. He also questioned how often Badoni has bowled in the IPL, asking, “Has anyone even seen him bowl there?”

“For some, you are told to score runs. But for some, you are picked even if you don’t do anything,” he said.

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“Can anyone remind me of one significant knock?” Srikkanth asked, arguing that IPL exposure alone does not guarantee success in the 50-over format. “He can’t take the match away from you,” he added.

Representing Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) in IPL 2025, Badoni smashed 329 runs in 14 innings with a best of 74. With the ball, he was not effective and scalped two wickets, a feat slammed by the 1983 World Cup winner.

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Badoni, in recent times, has not been too effective with both bat and ball. His significant contribution to Delhi came in a recent Vijay Hazare Trophy game where he bagged three wickets.

It will be interesting to see whether the Delhi all-rounder is included in the Indian team’s Playing XI for the Rajkot ODI, as Sundar will miss out due to injury.