Dilip Vengsarkar wants Team India to include two impact players in the first Test

Virat Kohli’s Team India will lock horns with England on Wednesday in first of the five-match Test series at Edgbaston. There is a lot of talk about the team combination of the visitors and it is tough to predict their playing XI ahead of the series opener. However, the former India captain Dilip Vengsarkar wants them to surprise England with the inclusion of Kuldeep Yadav and the uncapped wicketkeeper Rishabh Pant.

The mystery spin of Kuldeep earned him 14 wickets during the limited-overs leg of the tour and he was picked for the Tests for the same reason as well. While Pant has earned a maiden call-up in the longest format thanks to his exploits in the country with the ‘A’ team. But it looks unlikely as of now that the team management will go with them. Ravi Ashwin will most probably lead the spin attack while Dinesh Karthik is expected to don the gloves for the first match.

I will pick Kuldeep over anybody else

Dilip Vengsarkar, in his column for the Times of India, has backed Kuldeep Yadav to do well against the Brits in whites as well. He reckoned that they struggled to pick him in the limited-overs format and this is the right time to give him a go when the opposition is wary of him.

“When it comes to the spinners, I’ll pick Kuldeep Yadav over anybody else. I think that the English batsmen aren’t very comfortable against a wrist spinner. They’re wary of him, and the Indian team should make sure of that advantage,” he wrote.

He further added that Pant should get a nod ahead of Karthik which will catch the home side off-guard and the former can play the role of the aggressor down the order. “I’ll go with Rishabh Pant as the wicketkeeper because he’s an unknown quantity. He can play a crucial hand,” Vengsarkar added.

[interaction id=”5b5c560f77f0ec452a57d18a”]

Keep following CricTracker for more news and updates