India, July 31 -- It has been 961 days and counting as Abhimanyu Easwaran continues to wait with bated breath for his India debut. While the England tour seemed like his best chance, especially after impressing in the two India A tour games, the continued rejection left him 'depressed', said his father, who lashed out at head coach Gautam Gambhir, questioning the logic behind preferring Karun Nair over his son.

In 2021, Easwaran received two call-ups from the BCCI selectors, albeit as a standby - first for a home Test series against England, and then for the World Test Championship final against New Zealand. His first official inclusion in the Indian squad came in 2022, for the Test series against Bangladesh. Since then, he has regularly...