 "Senior India batter Shreyas Iyer has not represented India in Test cricket since the second of five Tests against England in Visakhapatnam last year. Reuters")
The Ajit Agarkar-led selection committee ended the suspense surrounding India’s squad for the upcoming Test tour of England as well as Rohit’s successor as captain in the format, unveiling an 18-man squad with Shubman Gill as the captain and Rishabh Pant as his deputy.
With icons of the game such as Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli having retired from Test cricket earlier this month and Ravichandran Ashwin having announced his retirement from all forms of international cricket midway during the tour of Australia, the selectors decided to include some fresh faces in the squad besides picking a new captain and vice-captain.
Tamil Nadu’s Sai Sudharsan and Bengal’s Abhimanyu Easwaran – who will be leading India A in a series of tour games in England before the Test series – have thus been included with one of them likely to open alongside Yashasvi Jaiswal. Similarly, Karun Nair has been recalled after eight years , having been dropped from the team just months after becoming only the second Indian to score a Test triple century.
Sehwag feels Iyer can ‘definitely play all three formats’
The absence of a few individuals, however, has raised eyebrows, including senior pacer Mohammed Shami and middle-order batter Shreyas Iyer. Batting legend Virender Sehwag was among those questioning Iyer’s absence from the England-bound Indian squad, describing the Mumbaikar as someone who can “definitely play all three formats”.
“He doesn’t get much credit for his captaincy. Manoj (Tiwary) said that Rishabh Pant didn’t get captaincy because his IPL season hasn’t been great. But Iyer has had a great season, he is also the captain. Why can’t he play in Test cricket? He can definitely play all three formats,” Sehwag said on Cricbuzz, reacting to India’s Test squad.
Sehwag added that it was important for the team to capitalise on a batter’s good form regardless of the format, which has been the case with the 30-year-old this year, from starring in India’s triumph in the ICC Champions Trophy to leading Punjab Kings from the front in the ongoing Indian Premier League.
Impact Shorts
More Shorts“When you’re in good form, it’s good to take him to the tour because there are higher chances of him performing. I would want to see him in Test team. If he keeps the same approach in Test cricket, it benefits the team. If you have 2-3 players like that, it sets fear in the opposition. England plays at 6-7 runs/over. If Indian team even manages to play at 4-5 runs/over, they can put them under pressure,” ‘Viru’ added.
Iyer has collected 811 runs in 14 Test appearances at an average of 36.86, collecting a century and five half-centuries since making his debut in the format against New Zealand in November 2021. He made the last of his Test appearances during the five-Test series against England at home last year.