The BCCI, on Saturday (February 10), announced the India squad for the final three Tests of the ongoing five-match series against England. The highlight of the squad is the update on Virat Kohli.
While Kohli was expected to return for the third Test, the board has announced that the former India skipper will now miss the last three Tests as well due to personal reasons. He was named in the squad for the first two Tests but pulled out of both the games due to the undisclosed personal reasons.
Ravindra Jadeja and KL Rahul have returned to the squad but the BCCI has stated that their participation will depend on the fitness clearance from the medial team. The duo missed the second Test after suffering injuries in the first Test.
“Virat Kohli will remain unavailable for selection for the remainder of the series due to personal reasons. The Board fully respects and supports Mr. Kohli’s decision,” the BCCI stated.
“The participation of Ravindra Jadeja and KL Rahul is subject to fitness clearance from the BCCI medical team,” it added.
India squad for last three Tests:
Middle-order batsman Shreyas Iyer has been dropped from the squad for the last three Tests although the BCCI has not given any reason behind the decision. Recent reports state that the Mumbai batsman felt pain in his back while batting in the second Test. The selectors have decided against including any other batsman in the squad.
At the same time, the Ajit Agarkar-led selection panel has handed maiden Test call-up to Bengal pacer Akash Deep after he recently impressed for India A. While Avesh Khan, who was released from the squad before the first Test to play in Ranji Trophy, was expected to be named as the backup pacer, the selectors have picked Akash Deep.
In the two unofficial Tests against England Lions, Akash Deep picked up 11 wickets. He also has more than 100 wickets in 29 first-class games. The selectors have also retained Saurabh Kumar, Washington Sundar and Sarfaraz Ahmed in the squad. They were not a part of the original squad but were added to the team just before the second Test after Jadeja and Rahul were ruled out of the game.
India squad:
Rohit Sharma (C), Jasprit Bumrah (VC), Yashasvi Jaiswal, Shubman Gill, KL Rahul*, Rajat Patidar, Sarfaraz Khan, Dhruv Jurel (WK), KS Bharat (WK), R Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja*, Axar Patel, Washington Sundar, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohd. Siraj, Mukesh Kumar, Akash Deep
