India squad for West Indies Test tour comprises a grand total of 16 cricketers – one more than what was the case during ICC World Test Championship final against Australia last month. The addition means that India have an additional specialist batter with them for a two-match series in the Caribbean.
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Having represented India in 10 white-ball matches, batter Ruturaj Gaikwad is part of the Test squad for the first time. Much like the Maharashtra batter, there’s also a maiden Test call-up for Bengal pacer Mukesh Kumar. Batter Yashasvi Jaiswal, on the contrary, has received a made it to the national squad for the first time in his career.
Fast bowler Navdeep Saini, meanwhile, has been recalled into the squad as a 16th member a couple of years after he played the last of his 21 international matches across all the three formats. Just one-match into his comeback stint, Ajinkya Rahane has been once again promoted to being the vice-captain of the Indian Test squad.
The aforementioned four names have found a spot in the Indian squad in place of batter Cheteshwar Pujara and fast bowlers Mohammed Shami and Umesh Yadav.
If not for batter Shubman Gill dropping down to No. 3, the development is certain of India fielding a whole new batter at a crucial position in Test cricket. Furthermore, Indian fans should also brace themselves for witnessing players making their Test debuts under Rohit Sharma on this tour.
India Squad For West Indies Test Tour
Rohit Sharma (c), Shubman Gill, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Virat Kohli, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Ajinkya Rahane (vc), KS Bharat (wk), Ishan Kishan (wk), Ravichandran Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Shardul Thakur, Axar Patel, Mohammed Siraj, Mukesh Kumar, Jaydev Unadkat, Navdeep Saini.
Has Cheteshwar Pujara Been Dropped?
Yes. Even at the cost of sounding debatable, WTC final debacle has made Pujara one of the two players who have been dropped as a ramification. While it is true that the 35-year old player hadn’t performed up to the mark in his second tenure as India’s No. 3, other non-performers retaining their spots has it in it for his fans to label him as a scapegoat.
That said, Pujara, who operates like a workhorse, is back to putting in the hard yards in domestic cricket. For the unversed, the right-handed batter scored a sincerely hardworking 133 (278) for West Zone in the second innings of the recently concluded first Duleep Trophy semi-final against Central Zone.
