Out of form Indian opener, Shikhar Dhawan could miss the third Test against New Zealand after injuring his finger while batting in the second innings of the second Test at Eden Gardens. He was hit on his left thumb twice by New Zealand pace spearhead Trent Boult. The southpaw was immediately taken to a city hospital for an x-ray and the reports are awaited.

The injury was looking bad and there is a slight possibility that he might miss the third Test starting on October 8. We are really hoping that the injury is not serious but it can be a blessing in disguise for the Indian team. Dhawan has been out of form for a long time in Tests.

The selectors were severely criticised when he was picked in the squad for the Test series following the poor outing in West Indies. The team management dropped him for the first Test and played in-form opener, KL Rahul. However, Rahul suffered an injury in the match and had to be ruled out for the remainder of the series.

Gautam Gambhir was recalled in the Indian Test team after a two-year hiatus and it was speculated that the team management will give him a chance ahead of Dhawan for the second Test. However, Dhawan was included in the playing eleven but the southpaw failed to capitalise on the opportunity and even he is declared fit to play the next match, it is highly unlikely that he will play the next game. Dhawan could score only 1 and 17 in the match and the team will definitely want to try Gautam Gambhir who performed brilliantly in the recently concluded Test series.

Gambhir’s inclusion in the playing eleven can be very beneficial for the Indian team. The Indian batsmen are struggling to deliver a dominant batting performance and the experienced campaigner can certainly boost the batting lineup. Gambhir is one of the finest players of spin in the country and he along with Murali Vijay can give the team good starts.