New Delhi [India], October 22 (ANI): Former Indian cricketer Atul Wassan strongly criticised Congress spokesperson Shama Mohammed's remarks, saying he felt 'ashamed' as part of the cricketing fraternity over attempts to bring communal narratives into the sport. Wassan said India has always maintained a higher moral ground compared to its neighbours and emphasised that cricketers are valued for their talent, not religion.

After taking a dig at former India skipper Rohit Sharma on his fitness, Congress leader Shama Mohamed, on Wednesday, again sparked controversy, drawing a religious angle to cricketer Sarfaraz Khan's omission from the India and India A squads announced recently by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI).

Taking to her official handle on X, Mohamed questioned whether Sarfaraz Khan's exclusion was due to his religious identity. 'Is Sarfaraz Khan not selected because of his surname! #justasking. We know where Gautam Gambhir stands on that matter,' she wrote.

Speaking on Shama Mohammed's comments, Atul Wassan told ANI, 'I think as part of the Cricket system, as a former player, I feel ashamed that a certain party spokesperson has said that. Look at our neighbours, how Cricketers had to survive. Someone had to convert from Christianity to Islam to survive. How Hindu players were ostracised there. It has never happened here. That is why we held a higher moral ground but if our political parties will use a player as a pawn. Very unfortunate. Whenever this communal card is played in sports in India, I feel wretched in my stomach. I played cricket; we had never even thought of any other cricketer in terms of their community or where they came from, because it is the quality of the player. She forgets that India has been led by Mohammad Azharuddin for 12 years. Even currently, too, Mohammed Shami, Mohammed Siraj.'

'I still believe that Sarfaraz should have been there. That is an entirely different topic, that's a Cricketing topic where we can debate, and our opinion is different from the selector's opinion. But that doesn't mean that you give this shape and tenor of him being from a particular community. Then you are maligning all the cricketers and the system. It is a big insult to the Indian Cricket system,' he added.

Her remarks came a day after the BCCI announced the India A squads for the two four-day matches against South Africa A, scheduled to be held at the BCCI Centre of Excellence in Bengaluru.

The first match is scheduled to be played from October 30 to November 2, while the second is slated for November 6 to 9. Despite his consistent domestic performances, Sarfaraz Khan was once again overlooked in both squads, triggering debates among fans and cricket analysts.

After years of toil in domestic cricket, Sarfaraz, 27, finally got to make his debut in Tests under Rohit Sharma at home against England in February last year. Since then, he has made 371 runs in six Tests at an average of 37.10, striking at a healthy 74.94, with a century and three fifties in 11 innings and a best score of 150.

He last played for India at home against New Zealand at Wankhede in November last year.

Sarfaraz averages 65.19 in 56 matches in first-class cricket. In 56 fixtures, he has slammed 2,467 runs, including 16 hundreds and 15 fifties, with a strike rate of 70.99.

Sarfaraz Khan's chances of making it to the Indian Test team appear slim after being overlooked for the Australia tour, despite his impressive domestic record, which includes an average of 117.47 in first-class cricket over the last five years.

India squad for first four-day match: Rishabh Pant (capt, wk), Ayush Mhatre, N Jagadeesan (wk), Sai Sudharsan (vice-capt), Devdutt Padikkal, Rajat Patidar, Harsh Dubey, Tanush Kotian, Manav Suthar, Anshul Kamboj, Yash Thakur, Ayush Badoni, Saransh Jain.

India squad for second four-day match: Rishabh Pant (capt, wk), KL Rahul, Dhruv Jurel (wk), Sai Sudharsan (vice-capt), Devdutt Padikkal, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Harsh Dubey, Tanush Kotian, Manav Suthar, Khaleel Ahmed, Gurnoor Brar, Abhimanyu Easwaran, Prasidh Krishna, Mohammed Siraj, Akash Deep. (ANI)