Sunil Gavaskar wants one change in the Indian team for 2nd Test vs England

Former Indian captain and commentator Sunil Gavaskar has stated that he would like to include the star spinner Kuldeep Yadav in the playing XI for the second Test against England at Edgbaston in Birmingham on Wednesday, July 2.

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Furthermore, Gavaskar asserted that Shardul Thakur, the bowling all-rounder, should be omitted from the XI. He reckons that Kuldeep will get a little bit of help in Birmingham. Notably, India suffered a five-wicket loss to England in the first Test in Leeds.

“Whether Jasprit Bumrah is fit or not, I think Kuldeep Yadav has to come into the team. I do believe that he should come into the team for Shardul Thakur because the Birmingham pitch will be one where there will be just a little bit of help for the wrist spinner,” Gavaskar said in the post-match show on Sony Sports Network.

Additionally, Gavaskar observed that if things don’t go well in India’s favor, they can instead go for the all-rounder Washington Sundar, replacing either top-order batter Sai Sudharsan or middle-order batter Karun Nair from the playing XI.

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“If things don't go well in the second Test, maybe Sai (Sudharsan) and Karun (Nair). I don't want to drop them at the moment. Then I'd also look at Washington (Sundar), so that it really gives you a more solid batting, and also gets a little more variety as far as the bowling is concerned,” he added.

It’s important to note that Kuldeep Yadav has a poor record in the longest format of the game in England. In the only Test he has played on English soil, the 2018 Test at Lord's, he went wicketless. 

India’s squad for second Test vs England: Shubman Gill (c), Rishabh Pant (vc & wk), Yashasvi Jaiswal, KL Rahul, Sai Sudharsan, Abhimanyu Easwaran, Karun Nair, Nitish Reddy, Ravindra Jadeja, Dhruv Jurel (WK), Washington Sundar, Shardul Thakur, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohd. Siraj, Prasidh Krishna, Akash Deep, Arshdeep Singh, Kuldeep Yadav, Harshit Rana.

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