“Parveez Rasool and Shubham Khajuria would bring laurels to the state,” says the chief minister of Jammu and Kashmir, Omar Abdullah. He is quite confident that these lads will make the whole state proud with their performances at International level. Rasool has been roped in the squad for the tour of Zimbabwe whereas Khajuria has been named as a member of Under-19 team that will tour to Sri Lanka.
Before Khajuria, the last player from Jammu and Kashmir to play for India colts was lanky pacer Abid Nabi. Meanwhile, the reports in DNA quoted J&K CM saying, "They would bring laurels to the Jammu and Kashmir state by their outstanding performance." Rasool has been roped in the 15-member squad after a chain of impressive performances that he made in the domestic circuit and that led him to create history by becoming the first cricketer from Jammu and Kashmir to be named in the Indian team.
Selectors were looking for fresh legs and with MS Dhoni and four other players taking a break, Rasool’s entry was almost sure for the upcoming ODI tour of Zimbabwe which will feature five matches to be held from July 24 to August 3 at Harare and Bulawayo.
Union Minister and JKCA President Dr Farooq Abdullah has announced a cash reward of Rs two lakh for Khajuria in recognition of his outstanding performance at the national level and his subsequent selection in the India under-19 team for the Lanka tour.