The Indian cricket squad chosen for the second Test match against England in Birmingham has created a lot of controversy, with three new players—Nitish Kumar Reddy, Washington Sundar, and Akash Deep—omitted from the first match played in Leeds.
The selection has created surprise, especially with Jasprit Bumrah's omissions and Kuldeep Yadav being ignored once more despite the spin-friendly conditions.
While there was considerable speculation that Kuldeep might finally get a chance to feature in the XI, India opted instead for a spin duo of Ravindra Jadeja and Washington Sundar. Former India captain Sourav Ganguly voiced his concerns regarding the decision during the Tea break on Day 1 of the Birmingham Test.
"I don't know if India are playing their two top-class spinners. England have batted first, I am surprised with that. I feel this is India's best chance at the moment. Put runs on the board and hopefully it happens," Ganguly said.
Iconic batsman Sunil Gavaskar also had his say on the pick, especially voicing puzzlement at the ommission of Kuldeep Yadav. The veteran spoke on Sony Sports (as reported by Sportskeeda), saying, "I'm a little surprised that Kuldeep wasn't selected, because on a surface like this, where everyone says there's a bit more turn."
He also questioned the move to strengthen the lower-middle order when wicket-taking possibilities could have been emphasized. "If your top-order batsmen aren't providing you the runs you're hoping for, then Washington at seven or Nitish Reddy at eight won't necessarily correct that, because those weren't the batsmen who let you down in the first Test. You scored 830 runs. You didn't score 380 in two innings — it was 830-plus. That's a lot of runs."
"So where you required the improvement was in the wicket-taking category, rather than in the batting," chimed in Gavaskar, pointing out India's inability to provide cutting edge with the ball as a greater priority.
Ravi Shastri, the erstwhile national team head coach, looked shocked by the team management's decision to rest Jasprit Bumrah, who is said to be fit. Shastri maintained that India couldn't risk keeping their top pacer on the sidelines in a match as big as this.
India's Test lineup has been causing concern of late. The side has achieved only one victory in their last nine games—since October—their toughest stretch in more than a decade. Their tour of England started on a disappointing note, with Shubman Gill's team suffering a five-wicket defeat in the first Test at Leeds.
As the second Test in Birmingham gets under way, issues regarding team choice, mainly in the bowling unit, continue to be hot topics among fans and retired players as well.
