For a while, Jay Shah seemed to have forgotten his rubber stamp, but on Saturday, India finalized its squad for the last three Tests against England after the BCCI honorary secretary gave the all-clear and confirmed Virat Kohli will not return.
Kohli missed the first two games due to personal reasons and with the series tied at 1-1, there is no change in the remaining matches in Rajkot, Ranchi and Dharamshala. “The board fully respects and supports Mr. Kohli’s decision,” Shah said in a press release from the BCCI team, which included the recently injured Ravindra Jadeja and KL Rahul.
This will be the first time since Kohli made his debut in 2011 that he will miss the entire home Test series and, to some extent, England will be encouraged. The 35-year-old remains the country’s highest-ranked Test batsman (seventh) with an average of 60 on home soil; a central pillar of his side’s 11-year winning streak in India one.
But given their thirst for entertainment, Ben Stokes and his visitors may also be feeling a wider disappointment at the absence of the modern great from this marquee Test series. Kohli’s star power will surely be missed by the broadcasters, as will the army of local fans who wear the number 18 on the back of their jerseys.
Apart from Kohli, India’s squad does have some changes. Jadeja and Rahul both return after missing the 106-run series win in Visakhapatnam, albeit with asterisks next to their names. Hamstring and quadriceps injuries mean they need to pass further fitness tests ahead of the third Test starting in Rajkot next Thursday.
If Rahul clears his right-hander, the right-hander is likely to be a direct replacement for Shreyas Iyer in the middle order as the latter is not in the list and no official explanation has been provided . Local media suggested Iyer had been suffering from back and groin pain since the end of the second Test, although his form with the bat left him vulnerable.
While Mohammad Shami is now confirmed to miss the entire series due to an ankle injury, Mohammad Siraj returns after some time off to strengthen India’s seaming options. Jasprit Bumrah is also in the 17-man squad, but it is understood that India are considering how best to manage the workload of their premier fast forward in the remaining matches.
Considering the scoreline, and the havoc Bumrah wreaked when he took nine English wickets last week, it would be a huge surprise if India provide immediate breathing space to their opponents in Rajkot. A lot may depend on how the 30-year-old feels after a nine-day break and what awaits the two teams.
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India’s last three Test line-up against England: Rohit Sharma (C), Jasprit Bumrah (VC), Yashasvi Jaiswal, Shubman Gill, KL Rahul*, Rajat Patidar, Sarfaraz Khan, Dhruv Jurel (WK), KS Bharat (WK), R Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja*, Axar Patel, Washington Sundar, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammed Siraj, Mukesh Kumar, Akash Deep (*subject to physical fitness test).
