Indian veteran batters Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma agreed to play the ODI series against Sri Lanka next month at the request of new head coach Gautam Gambhir. The duo announced their retirement from the T20I format within hours of India winning the T20 World Cup, and Ravindra Jadeja followed suit shortly after. However, the latter was not recalled for the ODI series, raising worries about his future in white-ball cricket. However, BCCI chief selector Ajit Agarkar explained why the all-rounder was not picked in the ODI squad.

Jadeja’s absence from the ODI squad sparked questions about whether the all-rounder was in the scheme of things for the Champions Trophy. India will play only six ODIs in the lead-up to the ICC Champions Trophy in February of next year. Aside from the three matches against Sri Lanka, which will be played from August 3 to 7, India will host England for a three-match series.

Speaking to the press on Monday, Agarkar confirmed that Jadeja was not dropped and he remains in the management’s plan for the Champions Trophy. Not at all dropped. Either he or Axar Patel. Big test season coming up. I don’t think 3 games would have mattered. We should have cleared. He is still within the scheme of things, the chief selector said.

Another significant omission from the ODI squad included Sanju Samson, who scored a stunning century in his last ODI match. Every player left out feels hard done. You’ve got to see who’s picked ahead. At this stage, we had the opportunity to send guys to Zimbabwe. Sometimes it’s just the way things go. Tough to stuff all in 15, Agarkar concluded.