Three uncapped Indian players picked for Australia Tests; Axar dropped
What's the story
The Indian cricket team has announced an 18-member squad for the upcoming Border-Gavaskar Test series against Australia.
The series, starting November 22 in Perth, will see uncapped faces such as Abhimanyu Easwaran, Harshit Rana, and Nitish Reddy.
However, Kuldeep Yadav won't be a part of the team owing to a persistent left groin issue that requires attention at The BCCI Centre of Excellence.
Player profile
Easwaran's consistent performance earns him a spot
Bengal's top-order batter Easwaran has been named the third-choice opener with Rohit Sharma and Yashasvi Jaiswal.
The decision comes after Easwaran's consistent performance in domestic cricket, where he scored a century in each of his last four First-Class matches.
These matches included the Duleep Trophy, Ranji Trophy, and the Irani Cup.
Newcomers
Rana and Reddy make their Test debut
Fast bowler Harshit Rana and Andhra's medium-pace all-rounder Nitish Reddy, both of whom had brilliant stints in the IPL, have been included in the Test squad.
This has been a successful year for Rana who also played a key role in an IPL title win.
Reddy, who made his T20I debut after a strong IPL show, now gets his first Test call-up.
Team composition
India's pace department remains strong despite Shami's absence
Even though Mohammed Shami is missing due to injury recovery, India's pace department looks solid.
The team will depend on Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Siraj, with Akash Deep holding his place after impressive performances against England and Bangladesh.
Prasidh Krishna also returns to the Test squad after debuting in South Africa earlier this year and recovering from a stress fracture.
Squad details
Reserve players and Sundar's return
The Indian team will also have Mukesh Kumar, Navdeep Saini, and Khaleel Ahmed as reserve pace bowlers for the series.
Washington Sundar has been picked after his impactful comeback in Test cricket.
However, Axar Patel missed the bus this time around.
His exclusion is indeed shocking as the all-rounder has proven his abilities across all departments in his brief Test career.
Information
Here is India's squad
India squad:Rohit Sharma (C), Jasprit Bumrah (VC), Yashasvi Jaiswal, Abhimanyu Easwaran, Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, KL Rahul, Rishabh Pant (WK), Sarfaraz Khan, Dhruv Jurel (WK), R Ashwin, R Jadeja, Mohd. Siraj, Akash Deep, Prasidh Krishna, Harshit Rana, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Washington Sundar. Reserves:Mukesh Kumar, Navdeep Saini, Khaleel Ahmed.