India selectors drop Thakur and Binny for IND v NZ Test series

The India selectors, who are potentially picking their last ever squad for the Indian team have gone ahead and persisted with the same team that toured the Caribbean earlier this year. However, among the team picked, pacer Shardul Thakur and all-rounder Stuart Binny have been axed from the side. Both these players did not get a game in the West Indies.

While most of the selections were indeed expected, it seems clear that some of the players have been unlucky to miss the cut. At the same time, a few players such as Rohit Sharma, Ravindra Jadeja, and Murali Vijay will certainly consider themselves to be fortunate to have been picked for the team. Shikhar Dhawan also might find himself somewhat fortunate to be in the side.

The meeting in Mumbai saw the likes of Anil Kumble and Gagan Khoda be an integral part of the team selection. The usual suspects in the form of Vikram Rathour and Saba Karim were also present for the same. The meeting was chaired by Sandeep Patil. The committee met at Mumbai after watching some of the performances of the ongoing Duleep Trophy.

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“Rohit (Sharma) is a fabulous player but he hasn’t got a longer run in Tests cricket. He has been picked for one Test and then rested an entire season and again picked. So the selection committee, along with coach and captain, have decided that whoever would be picked will be given a fair amount of chances,” Patil said while addressing the media after the squad selection.

Some of the players who have seemingly been overlooked or have missed out are quite a big list. Apart from the absence of Shardul Thakur, 34-year old southpaw Gautam Gambhir has been left out of the side despite some decent form in the Duleep Trophy. Kuldeep Yadav and Nathu Singh also are a few players who have missed out on selection with Anil Kumble not looking to tweak a winning combination.

“It is not just Gautam Gambhir, we also have many senior players. It is good that we have younger players to be able to replace a senior player like Gambhir,” Patil said.

Squad: Virat Kohli (C), Wriddhiman Saha (WK), Ajinkya Rahane, Shikhar Dhawan, Rohit Sharma, Cheteshwar Pujara, Ravichandran Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Amit Mishra, Mohammad Shami, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Ishant Sharma, KL Rahul, Umesh Yadav, Murali Vijay