‘I’m scoring runs, working really hard, but not getting a chance,’ says one Indian youth about his ODI omission from the SA series.

India is currently fielding a second-choice lineup in the ODI series against South Africa due to the unavailability of several members of the main side. Shubman Gill, Sanju Samson, Ishan Kishan, and Rajat Patidar are among the squad’s key batsmen, while Shardul Thakur, Mohammed Siraj, Deepak Chahar, Avesh Khan, Kuldeep Yadav, and Ravi Bishnoi are among its key bowlers. Shikhar Dhawan is the team’s captain.

But Prithvi Shaw was noticeably absent from the team for the three-match series. The opener had a solid campaign for Mumbai in the Ranji Trophy last year as well as for India ‘A’ in the one-day series against New Zealand ‘A,’ hitting a vital 77 in his last outing for the team last month.

Shaw voiced his regret at not being chosen for the squad in an interview with Mid-Day. “I felt let down. I am working really hard and scoring runs, but I still don’t have a chance,” Shaw lamented.

It’s OK, however. They [the national selectors] will play me once they determine that I am ready. I shall try my best to take advantage of whatever chances I am given, whether they be with India ‘A’ or other teams, and I will maintain a suitable level of fitness,” he said. Shaw also said that he has improved his nutrition and lost 7-8 kg of weight since the IPL earlier this year.

“I performed a lot of physical training but did not focus on other aspects of my batting. After the previous IPL, I concentrated on losing weight and went down by seven to eight kg. I worked out often, ran frequently, and abstained from cold beverages and sweets. Chinese cuisine is no longer on my menu at all, the young opening said.

Shaw’s next competition will be for the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy.

We participated in a couple of exhibition matches here (in Ahmedabad). They’re all in excellent physical form. We have talented bowlers, batters, and all-rounders. It’s a pretty powerful squad, in my opinion. The support staff is all working very hard on our preparation, and I am confident in our ability to succeed as a team. All of the squad members have established careers, have played at a high level, and have years of experience, according to Shaw.