India Announces Test Squad for Bangladesh Series
Rishabh Pant has rejoined the Test side for the first time since his car accident in December 2022, as India announced the squad for their first match against Bangladesh. Regrettably, Mohammed Shami is not back, as he is still recovering from an ankle surgery.
Yash Dayal, a left-arm seamer, has been called up to play for the first time in a Test. This move is aimed at preparing for the five-Test series in Australia set to take place later in the year.
The 16-member squad further welcomes back KL Rahul, who was previously ruled out of the England series after only one Test. Akash Deep has retained his place following his debut in that series, with impressive performance in the Duleep Trophy game in Bengaluru where he secured nine wickets.
Rahul played his most recent Test in January against England, after which he had to leave the rest of the series due to a quadriceps injury. He performed well in the same Duleep Trophy game, scoring 37 in the first innings and 57 in the second for India A. Rishabh Pant, playing for India B, scored 7 and 61, and took seven catches.
Dayal likewise impressed by securing three wickets in the fourth innings to usher India B to a decisive victory. He has under his belt 24 first-class games thus far, during which he took 76 wickets at 28.89.
Dhruv Jurel, who debuted against England and obtained 190 runs in three Tests, is the secondary wicket-keeper in the team. From that series, India has left out Rajat Patidar, KS Bharat, Devdutt Padikkal, Washington Sundar, and Mukesh Kumar.
It is anticipated that Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Siraj will spearhead the pace attack. As for the spin department, the team is sticking with reliable choices R Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Axar Patel, and Kuldeep Yadav.
The first Test against Bangladesh is scheduled to be held in Chennai from September 19, and the second Test in Kanpur from September 27. These will be followed by three T20I matches.
The squad for first Test vs Bangladesh lists Rohit Sharma (captain), Yashasvi Jaiswal, Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, KL Rahul, Sarfaraz Khan, Rishabh Pant (wk), Dhruv Jurel (wk), R Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Axar Patel, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammed Siraj, Akash Deep, Jasprit Bumrah, and Yash Dayal.
