With Indian team management not picking up spinner Kuldeep Yadav for the second Test against England at Edgbaston, it meant that the 30-year-old spinner would miss a Test in England for the second successive time. The spinner was excluded from the playing XI with the Indian team management preferring all-rounder Washington Sundar as the second spinner in the team besides Ravindra Jadeja and former Indian captain Sunil Gavaskar has termed Yadav’s exclusion as baffling.
“I’m a little baffled that Kuldeep wasn’t picked, because on a pitch like this, where everybody says there’s a little more turn.” Gavaskar said while commentating on Sony Sports.
Shubman Gill led Indian team made three changes in the side, which played in the five-wicket loss against England in the first Test against England at Leeds. With Sai Sudarshan being dropped along with Shardul Thakur, the Indian team management also went with the decision to rest Jasprit Bumrah. Along with all-round Nitish Kumar Reddy, pacer Akash Deep and Sundar were included in the playing XI for the second Test. With five centuries coming from an Indian batsman in the opening Test at Leeds, Gavaskar shared India needed to strengthen the wicket-taking department. “If your top-order batters are not giving you the runs you expect, then Washington at seven or Nitish Reddy at eight won’t necessarily fix that, because those weren’t the batters who failed you 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 needed strengthening was in the wicket-taking department, not so much in the batting,” Gavaskar added.
Former England pacer Stuart Broad termed the decision to rest Jasprit Bumrah as a surprising decision. “A week is a very good time off for a fast bowler. Bumrah’s (Jasprit) omission does surprise me and what also surprised me was him saying before the series he will only play three of the five Tests. You keep those cards close to your chest and play each week as it comes. They will definitely want Bumrah at Lord’s because of the movement you can get through the air, so can they risk him here?” Broad told Sky Sports during commentary.
