Form, fitness, not age, should be criteria for selection: Vengsarkar

Dilip Vengsarkar always comes across as a man who speaks his mind as he used to bat in a forthright mannerHe did just that way on Saturday evening at the Meet the Media programme organised by the Mumbai Press Club where the former India skipper and exnational chief selector also gave away the awards for the best video stories instituted by the clubThe 116Test veteran who said he still relished the role of the talent spotter for the Board of Control for Cricket in India that he performed in the past is currently a member of the BCCIrsquos apex playersrsquo councilExcerpts of his interaction with the mediaOn the future of Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma in T20 InternationalsBoth are great players Over the years they have won many matches There is still a lot of cricket in them They will be back in T20s Regarding Tests they are an integral part of the Indian team I am a huge fan of both They are still in great shape physically and mentally even though both are in their mid 30s I always believe as a selector that form and fitness are important Age is no criteria in cricket Virat Kohli is supremely fit I still believe they will play in all formats of the gameYes you have to look at future and groom players as well and at the right time If I was a selector I would have picked young Jammu and Kashmir fast bowler Umran Malik for the Bangladesh Test series Pace is very important and he can unsettle batsmen with his pace We donrsquot have many who can bowl in the 150s KMPHs This guy will play havoc when we visit England Australia or the West IndiesAlso read Doug Bracewell replaces injured Matt Henry for ODI series in IndiaThe Indian teamThe Indian team are doing extremely well in all forms of the game although the big prize has eluded us It is important for players to adapt to different formats If I play a fiveday or fourday game I should not play the reverse sweep and get out I believe Test cricket is very important as it tests the skill maturity and toughness of the player to the fullest Most of the players who play Tests can play T20 cricket tooFuture of 50over formatFiftyover format too is important You see the best of cricket in one day itself And in India it attracts a full house People say the middle overs become monotonous but spinners can get wickets in that period and get you back into the game If you see the 1985 Benson and Hedges World Championship held in Australia our spinners Ravi Shastri and L Sivaramakrishnan bowled brilliantly in those middle overs It was one of the things that was instrumental in us winning the CupOn top players not available to play domestic cricketIn south in Bangalore you can play even in July to September period It is very important for all international players to play in domestic cricket at least the Irani Cup and Duleep Trophy Otherwise these tournaments become an exercise in futility At least if all players play in these tournaments for one month it will be easier to select the best It is just a question of one month that should be given by all players to domestic cricket I feel very strongly about thisDuleep Trophy inter zonal formatIt is the ideal format and not the teams named Green Blue and Red There should be a sense of belonging In the zonal system the team is picked by zonal selectors based on performance irrespective of age They may be older cricketers too You can learn from older cricketers Only fringe players will be picked by national selectors those who will soon be playing for India and not older playersBCCI presidents appearing in online gaming adsI think I will leave this ball outside the off stumpWhether India should go and play in Pakistan or they should come here and playI think it should be left to the government to guide usJasprit Bumrah inducted into ODi team straightaway after recovering from injuryIt is up to the selectors Of course match fitness is important and the selectors will know from reports filed physios etcetera who are all match fitRanji Trophy formatI would like to have at least ten best teams in the elite group and the rest in plate group Sikkim got out for 6 runs That should not happen There should be an easy transition from domestic to Test cricket Playing against good teams makes you raise the bar and the transition is easier When I played for Dadar Union at the age of 15 I could play with Test cricketersOvercoaching of playersI believe in guiding and not coaching players If you have to coach players then they are not good enough Every player has got his own technique How you adapt to different conditions depends on you and your mental maturity I always believe that the players who can adapt quickly who can improvise are what matter to me If you are coaching these guys then they lose their natural ability Those who have done Level 1 2 3 coaching courses it is good But it is more important to know how and when to implement your knowledge gained from these coursesThe upcoming fourTest series at home against AustraliaIndia will do very well against Australia who are a very good side It will be a good game of cricketImportance of current players facing top spinners in domestic cricketWe could play a lot of club and domestic cricket We had the best spinners at that time and we could prepare day in and out Later it came to a stage that to get out to a spinner was a crime that was in our mind Someone like Abdul Qadir of Pakistan will get to play only the first two Tests against us and then he will be dropped You can spot good spinners as wellPlaying against the short ballCurrent Indian team plays the short ball very well In the past a lot of players who did extremely well in domestic cricket couldnrsquot handle the short ball in international cricket and lost out How you play the short ball in international cricket is extremely important I have not seen any one in the current team or in IPL flinching when playing the short ball