Representing the Indian cricket team is a dream for every player in the country, some get their chance at a young age while some have to grind hard for a longer time in domestic cricket and one such player is Abhimanyu Easwaran. The 28-year-old has been waiting for his chance for a long time but he is still patient and in no mood to give up on his dream.
The Bengal opener has scored consistently in the domestic circuit over the years and even got closer to making an international debut. He was part of India’s Test squad for the WTC Final 2021 and England tour as a stand-by player. A year later, he was selected as a replacement for the injured Rohit Sharma on the Bangladesh tour in 2022, yet the international debut has eluded him.
However, Easwaran has a chance to get back into the mix after getting picked in the touring India A squad to South Africa.
There is a big catch though – the BCCI has stated that Easwaran’s availability is subject to fitness. The 28-year-old suffered a split webbing in his right hand during Bengal’s Group E match against Madhya Pradesh in the Vijay Hazare Trophy. He was ruled out of the 50-over domestic tournament.
In an exclusive conversation with News18 CricketNext, Abhimanyu Easwaran talked about his recovery and what was going on his mind when he got injured with the India A tour around the corner.
“Recovery is going well. I will get my stitches removed on December 6. There will be a call once we get the stitches removed and then we’ll see how the process goes. It’s pretty obvious when you get injured right at the time you have to go on a tour with the team, makes you a bit frustrated,” Easwaran told News18 CricketNext.
The 28-year-old’s process is quite clear as he feels every match and tour is important for him to get noticed and he just wants to take one game at a time to move forward.
“Every tour is important because if you want to play for India every game matters, you are being noticed everywhere. It’s my job to focus on one game at a time so I make sure I give my best to make my team win whatever game I play be it for Bengal or the India A team,” he added.
‘A’ cricket – A bridge between domestic cricket and international cricket
The BCCI has arranged A team’s tours in the past wherever the senior teams travelled for the Test matches – more like shadow tours. However, with the ODI World Cup in focus, the board paused it after last year’s Bangladesh series.
With the South Africa tour, the youngsters in the A team will get the golden opportunity to prove themselves in the tough Proteas conditions.
Easwaran talked about the importance of A tours for the young players and said it gives the youngsters an edge. He emphasised that in case of an injury in the main squad, the A team players get an advantage to get into the senior team as the replacement.
“The ‘A’ cricket is more like a bridge between domestic cricket and international cricket because you are going to play against the international players in different conditions. And having these types of games has always been a benefit, because if any player gets injured or something then you might get a chance as you have played in those conditions and performed for the country. It’s a great exposure for cricketers who are in the team,” Easwaran asserted.
The top-order batter also toured with the A team during the 2021 tour to South Africa which is an experience he cherishes. He is eager to get back into the field to make some adjustments to the game before the tour.
“Well, I played in South Africa in the 2021 tour with the India A team, so it was a great experience. So, I had a few games in those conditions. I have to make a few changes to my gear when there are a few tactical things I have to do. I’ll just try and get them done. And obviously, once we get there, we will have a few practices and build up the sessions where I can actually look to find out the game plan and to how I’m going to play and how can I perform there,” he added.
Getting Pick in IPL 2024 Auction Not in My Control
Easwaran had a great run in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy this season as he was Bengal’s highest run-getter with 248 runs at a stunning rate of 155.
When asked whether he has done enough to get the attention of IPL franchise owners attention ahead of the auction, Easwaran replied, “Again, that’s something which is not in my control. I was just trying to make sure I didn’t get involved. I obviously had a few changes in my game for this tournament, which worked out pretty well. So, obviously, we lost in the quarterfinal, which wasn’t a great thing. But, it was good to contribute to the team in a good stage. Other information is not in my hands. I can only hope that I get things done. Nothing too much about it. Just trying to focus on the India A tour coming up.”
Meanwhile, the 28-year-old also talked about the importance of playing in the best league in the world – Indian Premier League.
“It’s a great platform that we have. IPL is the best league in the world right now. It’s a great exposure for young cricketers to the fact that they are playing against the best players in the bracket. Again, selection is something I can’t comment on because that is not in my hands,” he emphasised.
Test Specialist Tag – A People’s Perception
After his exploits in SMAT, Easwaran continued his fine form in the Vijay Hazare Trophy by accumulating 272 runs in just four matches at an average of 90.66 and a strike rate of 91.27.
Talking about his recent form in white-ball cricket, the Bengal batter admitted that he made a few changes in his game to succeed in limited overs format.
“Yeah, white-ball cricket, mainly T20 had to make a few changes, worked on a few shots, and I had to change my intent because I knew during the tournament there were going to be really good wickets, which they were as 180-190 were the par-scores there. So I had to change my intent, I had to work on a few shots, and I had to plan in a different way, not like the previous two years where you’re playing with really slow tracks in Guwahati and Lucknow,” he added.
Meanwhile, Easwaran said that he always wanted to be an all-format format player and called the ‘Test specialists’ tag only people’s perception.
“That’s only people’s opinion. That is people’s perception. I always want to become an all-format player. I’ll make sure I keep performing in whatever games I play in three formats,” Easwaran said.
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