The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) on Thursday announced the squad for the Test series against the West Indies.
Star pacer Jasprit Bumrah will lead India`s pace attack, whereas Karun Nair has been dropped from the side. While announcing the squad, chief selector Ajit Agarkar hinted that Nair and Abhimanyu Easwaran are no longer in the scheme of things.
In Nair`s place, Devdutt Padikkal has been added to the squad. What came as a surprise to the fans was the appointment of Ravindra Jadeja as vice-captain.
As Rishabh Pant is still recovering from the injury that he sustained during the Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy, Jadeja has been named as Shubman Gill`s deputy.
Speaking on Bumrah`s workload management, Agarkar said that he has had a good break after the Test series against England.
“This is a team for both the Test matches. So, he`s available for both. We`ve had a fair break after England. He didn`t play the fifth Test either. There`s been a month or five weeks of break,” he said.
“This tournament (the ongoing Asia Cup here where Bumrah is playing) has been fairly spaced out till this last week. He`s ready and keen to play both Test matches,” Agarkar explained.
However, while speaking on Nair, he was clear that the 30-year-old burly Bengaluru man didn`t make full use of opportunities, scoring one fifty in eight innings during the tour of England.
“We feel Padikkal offers a little bit more at this point and I wish we could give everyone 15 or 20 Tests. Unfortunately, it doesn`t work that way,” Agarkar said.
Stressing more on Padikkal`s selection, Agarkar said that he has shown decent form, and the management was expecting a bit more from Karun during the England series.
“Padikkal`s been in the Test squad. Frankly, we expected a bit more from Karun in England. Devdutt was in the Test squad in Australia, played in Dharamsala against England, got a 50 there. He`s shown some decent form within the race,” the former pacer stated.
On the other hand, Sudharsan also had similar outings as Nair, but the selectors picked him by sidelining the right-hander.
On Sudharsan`s selection, Agarkar said that Sai is a good player and the think tank is looking forward to giving him a long run.
“Eventually, it`s a little bit about continuity. There were a few changes at No.3 because of the combination that we played. But going forward, Sai has shown a lot of promise. We know he`s a very good player. Hopefully, we can give him a longish run from now on, at a particular number,” said the 47-year-old former cricketer.
The two-match Test series against West Indies is scheduled to begin on October 2, with the first match scheduled to be played at the Narendra Modi Stadium.
India`s squad for the Test series against West Indies: Shubman Gill (C), Yashasvi Jaiswal, KL Rahul, Sai Sudharsan, Devdutt Padikkal, Dhruv Jurel (WK), Ravindra Jadeja (VC), Washington Sundar, Jasprit Bumrah, Axar Patel, Nitish Kumar Reddy, N Jagadeesan (WK), Mohammed Siraj, Prasidh Krishna, Kuldeep Yadav.
(With PTI Inputs)