Yuzvendra Chahal snubbed for Vijay Hazare Trophy amid divorce rumours with Dhanashree; HCA reveal reason for exclusion

Yuzvendra Chahal, who has seemingly fallen out of reckoning for a place in the Indian white-ball set-up, implying he is unlikely to make the cut for the impending Champions Trophy, on Wednesday was ignored by Haryana's List A team for the knockout rounds of the Vijay Hazare Trophy amid his rumours of divorce with wife Dhanashree Verma. India spin bowler Yuzvendra Chahal(BCCI)

Chahal was earlier not picked for the group stage of the tournament as well, where the defending champions finished second in Group A after claiming six wins in seven matches to amass 24 points and sit only behind unbeaten Gujarat.

Haryana will next face Bengal in the 1st Preliminary quarter-final at Kotambi Stadium in Vadodara on January 9. Ahead of the match, the selectors made some changes to the squad and white-ball specialist Chahal was once again snubbed.

Speaking to Cricbuzz, a Haryana Cricket Association (HCA) official clarified that the call to exclude Chahal had nothing to do with his ongoing much-publicised personal crisis, and was rather a cricketing decision.

"We have made this decision in consultation with him, as we aim to groom a few youngsters with an eye on the future," the HCA official explained. “Parth Vats, a leg-spin all-rounder, is the player we are introducing at this stage.”

Dhanashree Verma breaks silence amid divorce rumours

The rumours began after social media users spotted that Chahal removed all his pictures with Dhanashree on Instagram and even unfollowed her, despite the latter retaining the pictures with the cricketer on her social media page.

On Wednesday, Dhanashree broke silence on the rumours of his divorce with Chahal in a lengthy Instagram story, lambasting "baseless writing" and "character assassination by faceless trolls."

She wrote: "The past few days have been incredibly tough for my family and me. What's truly upsetting is the baseless writing, devoid of fact checking, and the character assassination of my reputation by faceless trolls spreading hate. I've worked hard for years to build my name and integrity. My silence is not a sign of weakness; but of strength. While negativity spreads easily online, it takes courage and compassion to uplift others. I choose to focus on my truth and move forward, holding onto my values. The truth stands tall without the need for justification."

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