Veteran commentator Aakash Chopra has added that Mayank Yadav and Nitish Kumar Reddy have been ‘super fast-tracked’ following their addition among the four traveling reserves for India’s upcoming Test series against New Zealand as well. He also stated that uncertainties surrounding Mohammed Shami’s availability for the Border-Gavaskar Trophy might have forced the selectors to add four seam-bowling options as travelling reserves as well as apart from Mayank and Nitish, Prasidh Krishna and Harshit Rana have been included as traveling reserves as well.

In a video shared on his YouTube channel ‘Aakash Chopra’, he said, “After COVID, this is the first time you have picked four traveling reserves. It includes Prasidh Krishna, Mayank Yadav, Harshit Rana and Nitish Kumar Reddy. The four traveling reserves shows that the preparation for the Border-Gavaskar Trophy has started. They will bowl in the nets, their workloads will be managed, and they will be watched very closely.”

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“It’s probably because they are not yet sure about Shami’s status. Mayank Yadav’s first-class experience is almost next to nothing. Nitish Kumar Reddy is being invested in as he could be in your scheme of things. The Indian team are super fast-tracking them. They are going faster than the Vande Bharat Express because the rise of Mayank Yadav and Nitish Kumar Reddy is like a hockey stick,” he further added.

However, Mayank Yadav picked up two wickets which came at an average of 23.00 in his only first-class game so far. Nitish has played 20 first-class matches so far, scoring 627 runs at an average of 20.22 and claiming 54 dismissals at an average of 25.61 as well. In the same video, Aakash Chopra also opined on that Yash Dayal’s noninclusion in the main squad as well.

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“Yash Dayal is not there in the team. He was there in the last series but isn’t there in this one. His absence means their fascination for a left-arm seamer is probably no longer there. There were talks about Arshdeep (Singh) and Yash Dayal, and the Australia tour and all of that. Now you have left them. Yash hasn’t played but based on whatever you might have seen in the practice sessions, you might have realized that he is not ready, or else you are thinking that he should be allowed to play first-class cricket, and then you would send him for the India A tour,” Aakash Chopra concluded.