Nearly 21 months after suffering a horrific car crash, Rishabh Pant has been included in India’s Test squad for the upcoming series against Bangladesh beginning in Chennai on September 19. Given the hectic schedule, Pant’s workload will be managed through the course of five home Tests against Bangladesh and New Zealand with the possibility of him being rested at some point being discussed. The Indian Express understands that the selectors have left it to captain Rohit Sharma and head coach Gautam Gambhir to decide whether Pant or Dhruv Jurel, who impressed in England series, would keep wickets.
Apart from Pant, KL Rahul also makes a return as the Ajit Agarkar-led selection picked a full-strength squad for the first Test. Left-arm seamer Yash Dayal is the lone new face in the squad. From the squad that featured in the Test series against England earlier this year, Rajat Patidar, Devdutt Padikkal, KS Bharat and Mukesh Kumar have been left out with seamer Akash Deep retaining his spot. With R Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Kuldeep Yadav and Axar Patel, the spin department looks strong as ever.
With India set to play as many as 10 Tests in the next four months, a four-day camp has been scheduled from September 12 at the MA Chidambaram Stadium. As things stand, it is not clear if Virat Kohli will join the camp as there are indications that he would link up with the squad at a later date.
Call on Pant
With the exception of Mohammed Shami, with all their players fit and available, there was hardly any room for surprise omissions or inclusions in the squad. While the tour of Australia that begins mid November is high on India’s priority list, the five home Tests are of huge significance for Rohit & Co. If they manage to win all the five matches against Bangladesh and New Zealand, they will only need a draw in the five Tests in Australia to qualify for their third successive World Test Championship final.
While India would no doubt use the home season to condition themselves for the Australia trip, managing workload remains a key part. Since making a comeback to competitive cricket, the Duleep Trophy fixture in Bengaluru that concluded on Sunday was Pant’s only long-format match since the Mirpur Test in December 2022. Though he kept wickets regularly in the T20s, he played only one ODI during the tour of Sri Lanka.
🚨 NEWS 🚨- Team India’s squad for the 1st Test of the IDFC FIRST Bank Test series against Bangladesh announced.
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… pic.twitter.com/pQn7Ll7k3X
— BCCI (@BCCI) September 8, 2024
Having undergone a severe right-knee surgery that required ligament reconstruction, there are still doubts as to whether Pant would be able to keep in all the 10 Tests, especially when there is a short turnaround during the home season. Between each of their five home Tests, India have only a three-day gap including the travel day. While a three-match T20I series is sandwiched between the Tests against Bangladesh and New Zealand, there are concerns if Pant will be able to manage such a gruelling schedule especially while standing up to the spinners.
The Indian Express understands that like Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Siraj – whose workload will also be managed during the home season – Pant will also be kept under close watch. With Jurel showing immense promise and assurance in front and behind the stumps, India are not fretting too much about and would take a call on a match-by-match basis. If the need arises, India can play Pant as a specialist batsman and hand the wicketkeeping duties to Jurel.
Packed middle-order
Having taken the field against England with a batting line-up that was thin on experience, the return of Kohli and Rahul meant there was no space for any of the young crop. Sarfaraz Khan, who made an impressive start to his Test career against England retained his spot and is the lone reserve batsman in the squad. Rohit , Yashavi Jaiswal and Shubman Gill will make India’s top three. With Ashwin and Jadeja being sure starters, India continue to retain the batting depth that has been carrying them in Tests, especially at home.
The Indian Express understands that with three spinners expected to make the XI, India will rotate between Bumrah and Siraj to keep them fresh for the tour of Australia. With Akash continuing to impress in the Duleep Trophy, he is expected to play a huge role with the selectors looking at him as a third seamer.