Despite record-breaking heroics in India's domestic season, batsman Mayank Agarwal still waits for national call-up

Mayank Agarwal scored 90 off just 79 balls in the final at the Ferozeshah Kotla ground here on Tuesday to guide Karnataka to their third Vijay Hazare Trophy with a 41-run win over Saurashtra. And this is just one of the many stripes the batsman has earned this season.

Agarwal has scored 2,218 runs is the highest by anyone in a single Indian domestic season. Having become the first-ever Indian to break the 2,000-run barrier couple of days back, he also has distinction of scoring 1,160 runs, including five hundreds and two fifties, to become the highest run getter in the Ranji Trophy this season. 

While the right-handed batsman has been busy breaking records in the domestic circuit, the least he expected was a call from the senior national selectors. The call, though, came from his well wishers consoling him. 

The 27-year-old has not only been consistent, but ruthlessly brilliant throughout the ongoing season, but even he must have been forced to think hard about what else do he needs to do to make the cut into the national squad?

Agarwal understands that he has not been getting any younger. Having missed this opportunity to be part of Team India for the Nidahas Trophy, a tri-nation T20 series, in Sri Lanka, this Karnataka opener has missed an golden chance to carry his brilliant form into the international cricket. 

This is another matter that for India’s three wisemen (also known as selectors) have been going town terming their selected team as “team for the future”. The tournament in Sri Lanka, with Bangladesh as the third nation, will see India field new names like Deepak Hooda (226 runs in Mushtaq Ali and 352 in Vijay Hazare) and Rishabh Pant (411 runs in Mushtaq Ali, including a breezy 32-ball 100) along with two Tamil Nadu all-rounders, Vijay Shankar and Washington Sundar.

Agarwal certainly has no choice but then to carry on doing what he is best at. “As a player, I don’t differentiate between this tournament or that. We as players need to go out and perform every single day. It’s better to focus on things that are in your hands. Selection is something that is not in our control,” was how this 27-year-old batsman turned philosophical. 

On a brighter side, Karnataka’s champion batsman is waiting for his chance to perform for his new Indian Premier League side, Kings XI Punjab. “I am playing for a new team this time around. I am really excited and looking forward to meeting my other teammates once the camp starts in March,” he added.

What is the best?

By scoring 90 in the Vijay Hazare Trophy final on Tuesday, Agarwal has scored a half-century or more in nine out of 10 innings in the tournament. His staggering list of 77, 109, 84, 28, 102, 89, 140, 81 and 90 (total 800) could well have been enough to impress any selector on any other occasion.

But even his 1,160 runs, with five centuries, were not of any help in his case. While the selectors chose to rest skipper Virat Kohli and veteran Mahendra Singh Dhoni this time around, Shikhar Dhawan was allowed to put more stress on his body after tough South Africa tour. 

Agarwal, however, gave answer to selectors in his own sweet way. A blistering 140 against Hyderabad was followed by 81 against Maharashtra after the team announcement was enough to make them realise of their ‘unpardonable mistake’. The question that pops up now is what more does a player need to do to make a place in the national side especially when the selectors have a cushion of making senior players rest. 

There are couple of questions which our selectors need to answer. 

Why two wicket-keepers for such a small series? Are they still trying to assess the talent in Dinesh Karthik (Rishabh Pant the other) after his nearly 14-year-long international career? Or Suresh Raina still has great career left in him after almost the same number of years at the top?