K. L. Rahul and Rishabh Pant returned to the team while Yash Dayal earned his maiden call-up as India announced its squad for the upcoming Test Series against Bangladesh on Sunday.
India, led by Rohit Sharma, will play two Tests against Bangladesh, starting on September 19 and 27, respectively. Bangladesh comes into the series after stunning Pakistan on its home soil, with a clean sweep — its first-ever such achievement against the opponent.
The home series against the Tigers will mark Pant’s return to the Test arena for the first time since December 2022 when India toured Bangladesh. The southpaw endured a serious car accident on the Dehradun-Delhi highway a few days after the series.
The 26-year-old made his first domestic red-ball appearance during the ongoing Duleep Trophy in Bengaluru, where he scored a half century for India B in its second innings against India A.
Rahul also suffered an injury during the first Test against England in Hyderabad last year which kept him out of the remainder of the series. The Karnataka batter contributed with a half-century during the first round of Duleep Trophy fixtures. Dhruv Jurel who made his debut during the England series in the absence of the two regular ‘keepers, retains his place in the squad.
On the bowling front, Mohammed Shami continues to miss out after undergoing a surgery to treat an Achilles heel injury in February this year. Akash Deep who impressed on his Test debut against England in Ranchi also found a spot in the team after a nine-wicket match haul for India A in the Duleep Trophy game.
Left-arm pacer Dayal found a place after a good run of form. The Uttar Pradesh pacer bagged four wickets in the opening Duleep Trophy encounter after a successful outing in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024 where he bagged 15 wickets.
FULL SQUAD
Rohit Sharma (C), Yashasvi Jaiswal, Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, KL Rahul, Sarfaraz Khan, Rishabh Pant (WK), Dhruv Jurel (WK), R Ashwin, R Jadeja, Axar Patel, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohd. Siraj, Akash Deep, Jasprit Bumrah, Yash Dayal.
