Gujarats Karan Varadia was expelled from the India U-19 squad set to tour Sri Lanka in a couple of days after he was found to be over-age on Thursday. Varadia had been picked as part of a 15-man squad,led by Vijay Zol,to take on the Islanders in two four-day games in Dambulla and Kurunegala. The discrepancy regarding Varadias age was discovered only when Suru Nayak,a member of the Board of Control for Cricket in Indias (BCCI) cricket operations,realised that the date of birth on the youngsters passport didnt tally with the one on his birth certificate. Nayak immediately informed the BCCIs junior selection committee which then contacted the Gujarat Cricket Association (GCA) before ousting Varadia from the squad list. GCA secretary Rajesh Patel,who will also be accompanying the Indian colts to Sri Lanka,claimed ignorance regarding the age-fraud case and insisted that the association would take more stringent measures in trying to avoid any similar discrepancy in the future. He also added that Varadias rural background might have had a role to play in the outcome. caught unawares I was unaware of this. I found out only on Tuesday through the BCCI about this issue. Actually the deal is that the father is not educated. I had asked him to copy and scan Karans birth certificate,and send it to the BCCI. They didnt crosscheck that,however,resulting in the confusion, said Patel. The secretary also revealed that Varadia was using his passport for the first time and wouldnt have been aware of the age-ban issue. It was his first international tour. This has been an eye-opener for me personally and I will ensure that henceforth all documents regarding the players from our state association will be handed over directly to the BCCI by me, explained Patel. While Varadias maiden foreign trip now remains cancelled,the India U-23 squad bound for the ACC Emerging Teams Cup included Ankit Bawne. The Maharashtra batsman,ironically,had been removed from an India U-19 squad two years ago after being found to be over-age in identical circumstances.
