Mumbai: Not long ago Suresh Raina was an indispensable part of the India team. But he has been cooling his heels on the sidelines after playing an ODI here in 2015. Apparently, reputation doesn’t count for team selection these days.

The 30-year old said that he had been working hard to return to the national side. “I have been working hard to regain my shape and fitness. I have made comebacks in the team and I will again do the same. Nothing is tough in life. I’m 30 and I still have a long way to go,” he added.

When asked about not passing the new yo-yo fitness test, Raina said: “You should ask the BCCI about the same; they will give you better clarity.”

India’s shining left-arm unorthodox spinner Kuldeep Yadav has earned a lot of applause after his hat trick against Australia in the Kolkata ODI. According to Raina, it was Anil Kumble who shaped Kuldeep into what he is today.

“Kuldeep is doing really well and the credit goes to Anil bhai who worked hard with him. When Kuldeep played with me in the IPL, he would always message Anil bhai after each game,” said Raina. “He was closely working with Brad Hogg as well in IPL which has helped him a lot. We can see that many players have not been able to attack him in the slog overs.”