In a letter written by Deepak Hooda to Baroda Cricket Association (BCA), Hooda made himself unavailable for the upcoming matches alleging Krunal Pandya of abusing him when other players were around. Hooda also shared that Pandya stopped him from training. On Sunday BCA CEO pulled up Hooda for misconduct and walking away from responsibility. Irfan Pathan the former Indian all-rounder feels that such incidents can harm player’s mental health and must be avoided.
Pathan took Twitter to express his views on the Pandya and Hooda spat.
During the difficult times of this pandemic wherein mental health of a player is of utmost importance as they have to stay in a bio-bubble as well as keep themselves focused on the game, such incidents may have adverse effects on a player and should be avoided.#MentalHealth pic.twitter.com/n3V2kKeO4G
— Irfan Pathan (@IrfanPathan) January 12, 2021
Pathan not only stressed the importance of mental health. The former Baroda captain shared his concerns over the selection of players. The star performers under the age of 30 are overlooked. Aditya Waghmode and Swapnil Singh both were overlooked. Waghmode was the leading run-getter (364) in the last season of Syed Mushtaq Ali trophy. Singh took 10 wickets and scored 216 runs in the last season of the tournament.
Pathan furthers stressed on the importance of creating a harmonious environment in the team. The players can play freely and put their best show only when such incidents are avoided.