40-yr-old Wasim Jaffer set to make one-day debut for Vidarbha

Vidarbha selectors literally pulled a rabbit out of the hat while announcing the squad for the Vijay Hazare Trophy slated to begin from September 19. That their rabbit was a 40-year-old former India opener, Wasim Jaffer, was the cause of concern for some local players.

Vidarbha selectors literally pulled a rabbit out of the hat while announcing the squad for the Vijay Hazare Trophy slated to begin from September 19. That their rabbit was a 40-year-old former India opener, Wasim Jaffer, was the cause of concern for some local players.

Jaffer’s inclusion in the 16-man Vidarbha squad for the Vijay Hazare Trophy has created a lot of stir before the start of the tournament. The former India opener whose experience played a key role in Vidarbha winning their maiden Ranji Trophy earlier this year, again got the nod to guide a side full of youngsters.

”If you look at the squad, it’s full of young players. His experience will be invaluable. We have already seen how he helped our batsmen out. His inclusion will definitely help the team,” a source in VCA told ToI.

The all-time highest run-scorer in Ranji Trophy, Jaffer, last played a one-day match for Mumbai back in 2014 before moving to Vidarbha as an outstation player in 2015. Jaffer interestingly will be making his List A debut for Vidarbha in this Vijay Hazare Trophy.

”He has been regularly playing One-dayers in England and scoring heavily. You need experience in the 50-over format. Our team will benefit a lot, especially in the crucial stages of the tournament. In the last few years, our team has done well in the league stage but struggled in the knock-outs,” the source added.

However, Jaffer’s inclusion has not gone down well with a few local cricketers “It’s very strange. When it comes to local players our selectors talk about age and promoting youngsters. But for outstation players, everything is fine,” a local player, who wished anonymity maintained.

“What about athleticism and agility, which it must be needed in shorter formats? He is a great player. Even at this age, he will score runs but will it help Vidharbha going forward? Vidarbha is a good One-day side. They are one of the best fielding units in the country. I don’t think Jaffer fits in,” he said.

Squad: Faiz Fazal (captain), Sanjay Ramaswamy, Ganesh Satish, Apoorv Wankhade, Atharva Taide, Akshay Wadkar, Jitesh Sharma, Mohit Kale, Ravi Jangid, Akshay Karnewar, Akshay Wakhare, Rajneesh Gurbani, Shrikant Wagh, Yash Thakur, Aditya Thakare, Wasim Jaffer