3 Surprising picks in India's Test squad to play against New Zealand

Team India is all set to welcome New Zealand on home soil by kicking off the series with three T20Is. The three-match T20I series will be followed by two Tests which will take place in Kanpur and Mumbai, respectively. In the latest turn of events, BCCI just announced the 16-man squad which will set action against NZ in the longest format of the game with Ajinkya Rahane as the skipper.

As the BCCI decided to rest some senior players due to the back-to-back series in the last six months, the likes of Rohit Sharma, Jasprit Bumrah, and Mohammed Shami are missing from the squad whereas Virat Kohli will be joining the duties from the Mumbai Test. Some surprising inclusions can also be seen in the lot and let’s take a look at-

Surprising inclusion in Team India’s squad for New Zealand Tests

1. KS Bharat

The Andhra Pradesh wicketkeeper-batter KS Bharat has been named in the Indian Test squad to face NZ in two games. His selection comes as surprising as he is yet to play a game for India across any format. Though he has been added as cover for injured players earlier, he hasn’t got his chance to show his talent.

In May 2021, he was added to India’s Test squad against England series as a cover for Wriddhiman Saha but didn’t play any game. He was roped in by RCB ahead of IPL 2021 auction and stunned all by playing a game-changing knock and smashing a six against DC on the last ball.

His records in 78 FC games and 51 List A games stand to be decent as he has 4283 and 1352 runs in the given formats, respectively. It remains to be seen if he gets his chance in the XI and makes it count.

2. Jayant Yadav

The Haryana off-spinner who can also come up with handy contributions with the bat lower down the order has been added in the squad. Though Jayant has played four Tests and an ODI with India, his inclusion stands to be surprising as he was nowhere to be seen in India’s latest series.

In four Test games, he has picked 11 wickets with 3/30 as his best bowling innings. After receiving his ODI cap from Virender Sehwag, Yadav went on to make a mark in the Test games by smashing a century and a half-century in his four Test outings.

He became the first Indian to score a century while stepping up for the team at number nine. His partnership of 241 runs with Virat Kohli for the eighth wicket stands to be the second-best in the world.

3. Shreyas Iyer

The case of Shreyas Iyer is turning out to be a little unlucky in the last few months which began with his shoulder injury against England in the home series earlier this year. He was ruled out of the first phase of IPL and then, lost the captaincy of Delhi Capitals in the second phase.

His absence for a long period of time even sidelined him from the T20 WC 2021 main squad. However, he has been named in India’s Test squad to face NZ but his inclusion stands to be surprising completely. Firstly, Iyer is deemed as a white-ball player of India who has good enough experience of ODIs and T20Is but is yet to play his first Test.

On the other hand, he is coming up from IPL after his injury but hasn’t been in a regular rhythm as he kept sitting in reserves list throughout T20 WC too. It remains to be seen if can turn a corner for India in the purest format.