Updated: 13 January 2024
Ashwin, Kuldeep In, Shami, Ishan Miss Out As India Announces 16-Men Squad For First Two Tests vs England. BCCI announces 16-member squad for the first 2 Tests against England which begins from 25 January at Hyderabad. Rohit Sharma will lead the team and Jasprit Bumrah will be vice-captain.
IPL 2024 Rajasthan Royals member and Uttar Pradesh wicket-keeper22-year-old Dhruv Jurel earns maiden call-up as a third back-up wicketkeeping option as Ishan Kishan, who had reportedly taken a break from cricket citing mental fatigue.
Kuldeep Yadav and Axar Patel have also returned to the Test squad after missing out on the recently concluded India’s tour of South Africa, while Shardul Thakur’s name is missing in the squad. Veterans Ajinkya Rahane and Cheteshwar Pujara continue to be overlooked by the BCCI for selection. India squad also does not include experienced fast bowler and ODI World Cup 2023 star Mohammed Shami as he continues to recover from the ankle injury he incurred during the recently concluded ODI World Cup.
Experienced all-rounder Ravichandran Ashwin is also included in the team along with Ravindra Jadeja. It shows that Men in Blue will heavily rely on spinners at their home ground. The first match of the series will be played from 25 January 25 29 January in Hyderabad. The second match will be played in Vizag from February 2 to 6.
Rohit Sharma-led team India registered their first-ever Test win in Cape Town on January 4, which helped it the World Test Championship (WTC) points table 2023-25.
India’s Squad for first 2 Tests vs England:
Ravindra Jadeja, Axar Patel, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohd. Siraj, Mukesh Kumar, Jasprit Bumrah (VC), Avesh Khan, Rohit Sharma (C), Shubman Gill, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul (WK), KS Bharat (WK), Dhruv Jurel (WK), Ravichandran Ashwin,