The dream has always been to play for India: Bengal captain Abhimanyu Easwaran

There have been few and far cricketers for India who have not been given the opportunity to represent the nation after having a noteworthy run in the first-class circuit. Abhimanyu Easwaran, the skipper of Bengal, is one such case. Despite having been consistent in racking up the numbers in the domestic arena, he has somehow never been shortlisted in an Indian XI up until now. 

In a recent discussion, Easwaran disclosed his ambition to represent the Indian team. However, he also made it a point to not be too ahead of himself at the moment.

“I want to stay in the present, but that is not really easy at times. But again, you just remind yourself as to what is there in your control. I try and focus on one day at a time. The dream has always been to play for the country. You always want to be in that squad, play for the country, and win games for India. That is always the dream. But that is going to happen when it has to happen. For now, I just want to focus on the Ranji Trophy and make sure I do well for Bengal,” stated Easwaran, as quoted by NDTV Sports.

Easwaran reiterated his unappeasable yearning of representing the Indian team, but was also understanding of the fact that factors like selection weren't in his hands. His philosophy was to concentrate on his sphere of influence and leave the rest to destiny.

“To play for the country has always been my dream and then to win games for India, I've always thought about that, and do some visualizing of it as well. But at the end of the day, that is not in my hands. All I can do is try and improve as a cricketer and get better every single day; try and play whatever situations I get.

Just try and make my team win whether I play for my state or in the Irani Cup, Duleep Trophy, and India A team. The dream is there, but again, selection is something which is not in my hands. I can just control the things which I have in control – that is how hard I work, look forward to the games, and prepare for it. Those are things I look to focus on. It's easier said than done, but I try to do that,” mentioned Easwaran.

Having been on the roster for a couple of international tours himself, Easwaran reflected on one of the best memories he could think of. 

“The Shami-Bumrah partnership, which took us into a great position to win a game, and then we had 60 overs to get them all-out to win at Lord's. It was after a long time that India beat England at Lord's, so it was a very special game. I really enjoyed it, as it's one of the best memories I've had in cricket,” recounted the opener.

Also Check: WATCH: Abhimanyu Easwaran smashes bat in anger after missing double-century in Irani Cup 2024

Every Test match is more like a World Cup game: Easwaran

The 29-year-old also spoke on why he felt the longest format of the game is far from being extinct, and attributed it mainly to the introduction of the two-year cycles of the World Test Championship by the International Cricket Council from 2019.

“The future of red-ball cricket is great because I feel with the World Test Championship coming up, every Test match is more like a World Cup game. Every game holds its own importance for every single team, whether you play at home or away, whether you play against the top team or you play against the team at number 10 — every single game is important. That is a great initiative by the ICC to have it,” noted Easwaran.

Also Read: India captain Rohit Sharma likely to miss initial part of Border-Gavaskar Trophy 2024-25 due to personal issues

There has been widespread talks going on regarding India wanting spare openers for the upcoming Border-Gavaskar Trophy to be played Down Under. If Easwaran manages to get substantial runs under his belt, it might just be a gateway of getting drafted as one of the backup openers.