3 players who were unlucky to miss out on the Test squad for fifth Test vs England

Team India have announced an 18-men squad for the upcoming rescheduled Test against England. India’s full-time captain, Rohit Sharma will lead the side, while KL Rahul will be his deputy. Former Indian captain, Virat Kohli will also be part of the side, while the likes of Shreyas Iyer, Hanuma Vihari and Shubman Gill have also held on to their places.

Advertisment

Interestingly, Chesteshwar Pujara has also made his way back into the squad, following his impressive performances in County Cricket. India have gone with two spinners in Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja. Axar Patel won’t be needed for one off-Test and thus, he isn’t part of the squad.

As far as the pace department is concerned, Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Shami will be the biggest bets. Besides, the likes of Mohammed Shami, Umesh Yadav, and Prasidh Krishna have also made the cut. Rishabh Pant is their first-choice wicket-keeper batter, while KS Bharat has been chosen as his back-up.

Amidst all the selections, there are a few players who also deserved a chance in the Test squad but wasn’t given the nod. In this article, we take a look at three players who were unlucky to miss out on the Test squad for the fifth rescheduled Test against England:

Advertisment

1. Mayank Agarwal

Mayank Agarwal: (Image Source: Twitter)

Mayank Agarwal had decent run in South Africa in Test series. He managed 135 runs in 3 matches at 22.50. However, the Indian cricketer couldn’t play any solid knock in the next Test series against Sri Lanka. In 3 innings, he managed 59 runs at 19.67.

Advertisment

Sadly, Mayank Agarwal couldn’t find a place in the Test squad against England. Dropping from the squad after just three bad outings is, perhaps, unfair to the Indian batter. He has been consistently scoring runs for the team in Test Cricket and deserved the backing from the Indian Team selectors.

2. Wriddhiman Saha

Wriddhiman Saha: (Image Source: Twitter)

Wriddhiman Saha was dropped for the Test series against Sri Lanka. The 37-year-old has played an influential role with the bat for Gujarat in helping them finish at the number one position on the points table. He has been in sensational form with the bat.

One could argue that Test Cricket and T20 cricket are two different formats but the veteran batter has been looking in great touch and would be brimming with confidence. Confidence and form is a big thing and that should have tempted the selectors to bring him back into the squad.\

3. Prithvi Shaw

Prithvi Shaw: (Image Source: Twitter)

With India looking to groom Shubman Gill in the middle-order, they could have picked a backup opener to Rohit Sharma and KL Rahul. Prithvi Shaw is one of the rising stars in Indian cricket. He has come a long way since making his Test debut for India and now has a wealth of experience under his shoulders. He is one of the most destructive batters in modern-day cricket and could be a great opener to have, especially in SENA countries. Perhaps, he could have been picked in the squad.