The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has announced India’s Test squad for the first 3 Tests of the 5-match series against England. The pacer Bhuvneshwar Kumar does not find a place as he suffered an injury to his lower back. He was out of the first 2 ODIs and looked like carrying a niggle in the 3rd ODI.
Mohammed Shami, who had failed the Yo-Yo Test before the Afghanistan Test, has made a return to the squad having passed this time. Wriddhiman Saha was ruled out due to an injury which meant that Dinesh Karthik finds a place in the side. Rishabh Pant has earned his maiden Test call-up and will serve as the backup wicketkeeper to Karthik.
Jasprit Bumrah, who had encountered a finger injury in the Ireland T20I series, missed the England ODI leg. He has still not recovered fully and hence he will not take part in the first Test. However, he is expected to be fit for the 2nd Test and will be available for selection.
On the back of impressive outings in the limited overs series, the chinaman Kuldeep Yadav has been included in the Test squad. The regular spinners of the longest format of the game – Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja keep their place.
The pacer Shardul Thakur has also retained his spot. Although it’s difficult for him to get a chance in the XI and the likes of Ishant Sharma, Umesh Yadav and Shami are expected to make the cut before him. The Test series starts with the first Test on August 1 at Edgbaston.
India’s Test squad for the first 3 Tests
Virat Kohli (c), Shikhar Dhawan, KL Rahul, Murali Vijay, Cheteshwar Pujara, Ajinkya Rahane (vc), Karun Nair, Dinesh Karthik (wk), Rishabh Pant (wk), Ravichandran Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Kuldeep Yadav, Hardik Pandya, Ishant Sharma, Mohammed Shami, Umesh Yadav, Jasprit Bumrah, Shardul Thakur
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 has announced India's Test squad for the first 3 Tests of the 5-match series against England. The pacer Bhuvneshwar Kumar does not find a place as he suffered an injury to his lower back. He was out of the first 2 ODIs and looked like carrying a niggle in the 3rd ODI.){kind=link}