Aakash Chopra has expressed concerns about Umran Malik's continued exclusion from cricket selections despite his earlier promise, suggesting that the young pacer seems to have vanished from the radar.
While Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli make a return to India's T20I squad against Afghanistan, Umran remains on the sidelines.
Chopra questions the sudden disappearance of a player who, not long ago, was considered for the World Cup team.
"Till some time back, Umran Malik was everywhere. We took him to the West Indies as well and it seemed like he could be in the World Cup team too but now he is not there in any of the teams. He does not even get selected for India A," said Aakash on his Youtube Channel.
"What happened within three months that a guy first gets selected for the Indian team, gets very minimum chances there, and then goes totally missing? We do not even know where Umran Malik is. Why is not he there? We should know why this is happening," he added.
Once hailed as the 'X Factor' of Indian bowling, Umran has played just 10 ODIs and eight T20Is for India, picking up 13 and 11 wickets respectively.
The former Indian opener also discusses the omission of middle-order batsman Shreyas Iyer from the squad against Afghanistan.
Chopra queries the decision to exclude Iyer, who served as the vice-captain during the T20I series against Australia post the 50-over World Cup.
"When I look at the recent selection, I see Shreyas Iyer. There was a five-match series immediately after the World Cup, so he was rested for the first two or three matches but then he joined the team as a vice-captain. He scored a fifty in the last match against Australia as well. It was a match-winning knock," said Aakash.
"Then he went to South Africa as well but now he is not in the team. Why is he not there? If he was a part of your team, what happened to him now, suddenly? What will you tell Shreyas Iyer, that why has not he been picked," concluded Aakash.
Chopra seeks answers regarding the current status of Umran Malik and the exclusion of Shreyas Iyer, urging transparency and communication in the selection process.
The T20I series against Afghanistan serves as India's final bilateral T20I series before the T20 World Cup, scheduled to commence on June 1.
