India's Test squad for Bangladesh series: Here are the takeaways
Rishabh Pant and KL Rahul have been recalled to the Indian Test cricket team for the upcoming series against Bangladesh. This marks Pant's first return to Test cricket since his car accident in December 2022. Meanwhile, Rahul is making a comeback after being sidelined from the England series due to a quadriceps injury. The 16-member squad also includes Yash Dayal, who received his maiden Test call-up. Here's more.
16-member Team India squad for 1st Test
Team India's squad for the 1st Test: Rohit Sharma (c), Yashasvi Jaiswal, Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, KL Rahul, Sarfaraz Khan, Rishabh Pant (wk), Dhruv Jurel (wk), R Ashwin, R Jadeja, Axar Patel, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohd. Siraj, Akash Deep, Jasprit Bumrah, Yash Dayal.
Duleep Trophy: Akash Deep excels; Rahul and Pant impress
Akash Deep, who debuted during the England series earlier this year, has managed to secure his spot in the team. He took nine wickets in the Duleep Trophy match for India A against India B. Meanwhile, both Rahul and Pant demonstrated scored fifties in the Duleep Trophy game. Rahul scored 37 and 57 runs for India A while Pant contributed 7 and 61 runs for India B. He also claimed seven catches. The Duleep Trophy performances played a key role.
Dayal gets a look in as Jurel keeps place
As per ESPNcricinfo, Dayal has an impressive record with 76 wickets from 24 First-Class games at an average of 28.89. Dhruv Jurel, who debuted against England and scored 190 runs in three Tests, is included. He will be seen as the second wicket-keeper in the side. Jurel, was one of the star performers for India against England and he has a bright future ahead of him.
Bumrah to lead India's pace attack
Jasprit Bumrah will look to spearhead the pace attack in the upcoming series. Bumrah will play for the first time since the ICC T20 World Cup. Notably, Siraj, who last played versus Sri Lanka, was rested for the Duleep Trophy. The spin department will be handled by R Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Axar Patel and Kuldeep Yadav. India could be playing Akash Deep alongside Bumrah after his superb performance in the Duleep Trophy.
Several names are missing
The likes of Rajat Patidar, KS Bharat, Devdutt Padikkal, Washington Sundar and Mukesh Kumar have been dropped from the squad that played against England. Meanwhile, Shreyas Iyer, who was dropped from the Test team earlier, didn't find a place despite a fifty in the Duleep Trophy. Ajinkya Rahane, who did a decent job of late in England's domestic cricket, didn't find a ticket.
