Sunil Gavaskar reacts on Rohit Sharma’s exclusion from top player’s list. (Source: File Photo) Sunil Gavaskar reacts on Rohit Sharma’s exclusion from top player’s list. (Source: File Photo)

After Wisden Almanack excluded Rohit Sharma from the top five cricketers of 2019, former Indian batsman Sunil Gavaskar reacted by saying that Wisden only considers English players.

Wisden picked Ellyse Perry, Pat Cummins, Marnus Labuschagne, Jofra Archer, and Simon Harmer as the top five cricketers of last year. Gavaskar joined other Indian cricketers in criticism and said that Rohit will not lose his sleep over it.

In a column for Mid Day, Gavaskar wrote, “Firstly, let’s get one thing clear: Rohit is not going to lose sleep over his exclusion. All that he and the others in the Indian team are concerned about is winning games for the country and getting those delightful thumps on the back and hair ruffled by teammates in appreciation of their effort. That’s the sweetest and only compliment that any cricketer wants.”

“Any other compliment, praise or even criticism doesn’t really matter. So, make no mistake it won’t matter to Rohit. He knows he gave his everything to the Indian team in their pursuit of the World Cup. You win some, you lose some.”

Arguing that Wisden’s opinion shouldn’t be taken seriously since it gives preference to performances in England, Gavaskar said, “One may argue that Steve Smith was chosen as Cricketer of the Year in an earlier year and so does not qualify for his performances last year. This once again confirms that the second best or lower performances get the nod.”

READ | ‘Shocked at no Rohit Sharma in Wisden’s list’: VVS Laxman

“Remember also that a player could get thousands of runs and hundreds of wickets but if that has not happened in England then he still won’t be in the list of five since only performances in England are taken into account. Since that has been the case for so long, why should anyone even give the list and the publication any importance since it rates only what happens in England,” he added.

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