This is very sad, very unfortunate, says former selector Kiran More on Irfan Pathan's snub

What's the story?

After the shocking axing of out-of-favour Indian all-rounder Irfan Pathan by the Baroda Cricket Association, former Indian selector Kiran More has slammed the state association for this step.

More believes that his state association could have done better and that they should have respected the worth of Irfan as a player before taking such a massive decision.

“This is very sad. Very unfortunate, I don’t want to say anything. I am no longer involved with Baroda cricket but this is very sad,” Kiran More said.

The Details

Irfan also took to Twitter to express his displeasure over the turn of events, but maintained that he is not willing to give up the fight to not only win his place back in his stateside, but also the Indian team.

"Not wishing Good Morning & not being a YES man to ur boss can go against u...but don’t bother, keep doing ur work #keepfighting #keeptrying" was Pathan’s first reaction on his official twitter handle after hearing this news.

Sportskeeda tried reaching out to the all-rounder, but he was not available to make any comments over this issue.

In case you didn’t know…

Pathan was dropped as the captain of Baroda after only a couple matches into the season. Also, he was axed from the side to make way for 'younger players', according to the selectors.

Young all-rounder Deepak Hooda was given the mantle of the side for the rest of the season.

What's next?

This sacking has drawn the ire of cricket fans from all over the country and it would hence be interesting to see if the selectors go back and get Irfan back in the side.

Also, amidst all the upheaval, the pressure on young Deepak Hooda has grown exponentially and his every move will forever be under the scrutiny.

Author's take

Irfan, who is 33, has been out of national contention for quite some time now, but after the reinstatement and then retirement of Ashish Nehra from International cricket he had expressed his hope to push once again to grab the attention of the national selectors.

However, the cold shoulder offered to him by the Baroda Cricket Association may well snuff the fight in the player, hence the route he treads on might well define his future.