Rohit Sharma to skip entire NZ Test series, Kohli opts out of 1st game; new support staff checks in
New Delhi, Nov 11: India's newly-appointed T20 captain Rohit Sharma is set to be rested from the two-match Test series against New Zealand while Virat Kohli will miss the opening match as a "mentally and physically exhausted" Team India gets down to workload management during the home assignment.
Vice-captain Ajinkya Rahane will lead the side in the opening Test in Kanpur as Kohli extends his break after opting out of the three-match T20 series starting November 17 in Jaipur.
It is learnt from a reliable BCCI source that the squad has been finalised after a meeting of the selection committee on Thursday but a formal announcement is still awaited.
Other bigwigs who will sit out both the Tests, to be held in Kanpur and Mumbai, are wicketkeeper-batsman Rishabh Pant, and the pace duo of Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Shami.
Rohit will take this break after leading the team in the T20 series. The Tests are scheduled to start on November 25 in Kanpur.
Kohli will be back for the second game in Mumbai from December 3. The Indian Test and ODI captain has spoken extensively about the bubble fatigue and how it has been taking a toll on the players mentally.
In Pant's absence, Wriddhiman Saha will take over the wicket-keeping duties with KS Bharath acting as the second keeper for the series.
The 28-year-old Bharath, who hails from Andhra Pradesh, has only played in the IPL, signed up by Royal Challengers Bangalore, this year.
He was among the five standby players for the home Test series against England this year.
The rest of the squad comprises the usual suspects with Test regulars like Hanuma Vihari, Cheteshwar Pujara and Mayank Agarwal expectedly finding their way in.
New support staff checks in:
As was expected, Paras Mhambrey will join the team as the new bowling coach replacing Bharat Arun, whose tenure ended with India's campaign in the T20 World Cup.
Arun and head coach Ravi Shastri's stint came to a halt with the team's last group stage match against Namibia.
Mhambrey is close to new head coach Rahul Dravid and was part of the support staff during a second-string India's tour of Sri Lanka in July this year where Dravid served as head coach.
Vikram Rathour has been retained as the batting coach after he reapplied for the position, while T Dilip is the new fielding coach.
Dravid, it is learnt, wanted Abhay Sharma to be the fielding coach but the Cricket Advisory Committee has gone with Dilip, who had travelled with the Indian team during the July tour of Sri Lanka.
The 39-year-old was the fielding coach of the Hyderabad team and has also worked with the India A side in the past.
Likely squad for Test series against New Zealand:
Ajinkya Rahane (captain), K L Rahul, Mayank Agarwal, Shubman Gill, Cheteshwar Pujara, Hanuma Vihari, Wriddhiman Saha (wk), Axar Patel, R Ashwin, Umesh Yadav, Ishant Sharma, Mohammed Siraj, Prasidh Krishna, KS bharath (wk), Ravindra Jadeja.
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Modi govt by changing name of MGNREGA exposed its 'hatred' towards Gandhi: Siddaramaiah
Bengaluru (PTI): Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Tuesday said that the union government led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, attempting to change the name and structure of the MGNREGA, has itself exposed its "hatred" towards the poor and towards Mahatma Gandhi.
He also accused the Centre of "altering" the very structure of the scheme, by shifting nearly 40 per cent of the cost onto the state governments, and called Modi "anti federal".
Suggesting that the NDA government at the Centre start a "Ministry of Name Change", with the Prime Minister himself holding that portfolio, the CM warned of a statewide agitation against this name change move.
The Viksit Bharat Guarantee for Rozgar and Ajeevika Mission (Gramin) (VB-G RAM G) Bill, 2025, that seeks to replace the existing rural employment law MGNREGA, was introduced in the Lok Sabha on Tuesday amid strong objections by the opposition to the "removal" of Mahatma Gandhi's name from it.
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"The Union government led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, which is attempting to change the name and structure of the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGA), has itself exposed its hatred towards the poor and towards Mahatma Gandhi," Siddaramaiah said in a statement.
Implemented by the UPA government 20 years ago, the MGNREGA scheme has played a crucial role in eradicating unemployment and poverty in rural areas, he said, adding that "this scheme, which guarantees the right to employment to every individual, has received praise from economists both in India and abroad."
Noting that MGNREGA was a genuine form of employment guarantee, the CM said the proposed new structure under the Modi government strips away that guarantee and places the assurance of work at the whims of political leaders.
"This will further deepen caste discrimination and social inequality," he claimed.
Highlighting that the NDA government has altered the very structure of MGNREGA, a scheme whose entire expenditure was earlier borne by the Central government, by shifting nearly 40 per cent of the cost onto the state governments, Siddaramaiah said this stands as clear evidence of the "anti-federal attitude" that Prime Minister Modi has followed ever since coming to power.
"This move will also increase the migration of poor people in search of work as the proposed form does not guarantee employment in their own location -- forcing families to travel long distances to survive," he said.
Naming this scheme after Mahatma Gandhi, who sowed the dream of Gram Swaraj, was a meaningful decision, the CM said, "While Prime Minister Narendra Modi indulges in praising Gandhi during his foreign tours, within the country he has consistently engaged in attempts to erase Gandhi's legacy from key national programmes. From a parivar that seeks to glorify Gandhi's assassin Godse, what different conduct can one really expect?"
"Narendra Modi is widely known for simply changing the names of landmark schemes launched by the UPA government rather than preserving or strengthening them. It would be more appropriate for this government to start a 'Ministry of Name Change,' with the Prime Minister himself holding that portfolio," he said.
More than 25 flagship programmes launched during earlier governments were merely renamed or repackaged by the present regime, the CM further said, listing out that the Nirmal Bharat Abhiyan was rechristened as the Swachh Bharat Mission, while the Basic Savings Bank Deposit Account scheme was rebranded as the Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana, among others.
"These changes reflect a consistent pattern of altering names rather than fundamentally strengthening or expanding the original intent of these welfare initiatives," he added.
Stating that the Congress party and state government strongly condemn this "anti-people" decision of the Narendra Modi government, which has snatched food from the plates of the poor, insulted Bapu, and attempted to strangle state governments financially, Siddaramaiah warned about launching a statewide agitation against this move.
"The responsibility of preserving the MGNREGA scheme in its original form must also be taken up by the lakhs of beneficiaries of the scheme. They must hold the BJP leaders of the state accountable and exert pressure on them to raise their voices against this injustice, rising above party lines," he said.
