Mumbai, July 1 -- When Sachin Tendulkar, 19, took centre stage for Yorkshire in 1992 as their first overseas player, he dominated cricket headlines. Such was the primacy of County cricket. Three decades on, Ruturaj Gaikwad getting set to play for the same County is a footnote. That won't bother the 28-year-old for whom a good showing could open up new avenues in red-ball cricket. Like so many other capable batters in India yet to win the Test cap, to most cricket watchers, Gaikwad's identity is being an IPL star. The CSK skipper will relish the opportunity to demonstrate his batting proficiency abroad. Gaikwad will have plenty of Indian company. Tilak Varma and Ishan Kishan are currently enjoying short stints with Hampshire and Northamptonshire respectively. Yuzvendra Chahal will soon be joining Northants while left-arm pacer Khaleel Ahmed has signed a deal with Essex. These short spells in England work perfectly well for Indian players, either on the fringes of selection or discarded. These stints hold value over a quiet time at home in the monsoon or a holiday. "Being ranked No.3 in T20, people think I am (only) good in T20, but I have been saying all along that I can also be a good Test player," Varma told Hampshire media. "I like playing close to the body, being challenged, especially in English conditions." Varma scored a hundred on debut. And although Kishan is playing only two championship matches, in his bid to win back the trust of national selectors after being charged with neglecting domestic cricket, a knock of 87 against a bowling attack which had Kiwi fast bowler Will O'Rourke and English off-spinner Dom Bess would have earned him brownie points. It's true that the level of County cricket has taken a beating after T20 leagues became mainstream. While Tendulkar would drive around in his car with his name painted on its side, many of the present day County associations are transactional. Internationals dip in and out of their more lucrative commitments. Still, there is merit in playing County cricket with a certain class of players not suited to T20 demands - Tom Latham, Matt Henry, Dean Elgar, Jack Leach and others - strengthening the playing pool. There are also England players, like Jacob Bethell and Jofra Archer recently, who play to stay prepared for Tests. Winning a Test cap is no longer the Holy Grail for everyone. But for the Indian cricketers, barred from becoming global T20 professionals, all-format prominence is still a reality. The County route to Test selection serves as an additional checklist for the selectors. There are three examples in the current Indian squad in England - Sai Sudharsan, Karun Nair and Arshdeep Singh - whose County experience got a mention from chief selector Ajit Agarkar. There's also the case of making your game well-rounded in England by getting used to the Dukes ball. Dealing with cold conditions and a ball that swings all day can be educational. "I was stuck on zero for the first 25 balls in my first County game. I thought, 'Where the hell am I going to get the runs'?" Nair recalled on R Ashwin's YouTube channel. "That's when the switch happened in my head that it doesn't matter if you don't score runs in a particular period, but if you can hang in there, you can get out of tough situations, you will get a lot of runs later." Nair ended up with 487 runs, averaging 48.7 in seven matches, last year. After being dropped from the Karnataka team, Nair's County runs complemented his efforts for Ranji champions Vidarbha, paving the way for a Test recall. IPL connections sometimes make it easier to seal County deals. Venkatesh Iyer's contract with Lancashire last year was recommended by ex-KKR teammate Phil Salt. Varma was roped in by the subsidiary of the Hyderabad-based GMR Group which owns Hampshire. GMR co-owns Delhi Capitals. Priyank Panchal, who recently made peace with not being able to play for India and retired, might well have benefitted if he too had County runs to show. Abhimanyu Easwaran and Sarfaraz Khan, who weren't picked in IPL, would also be looking for suitors so that they can play County. India A tours are few. In the final analysis, when competition is cut throat and team management is sometimes guilty of confirmation bias, of not necessarily rating Ranji performers highly, every additional attribute counts....