Virat Kohli, Hardik Pandya return as India announces squad for first two Tests vs England 2021
India vs England 2021 Test series will consist of four Tests. Virat Kohli will lead the Indian team while Rahane was announced as the vice-captain.
Indian skipper Virat Kohli is all set to return in his captaincy duties as the selectors announce India's Test squad vs England 2021. The selection committee met on Tuesday to pick an 18-member squad for the first two Tests against England. The Indian team is all set to kickstart their home season with a four-match Test series against England starting February 5.
- Virat Kohli was announced as Captain while Ajinkya Rahane will feature as his deputy for the upcoming Test series.
- The likes of Ishant Sharma and Hardik Pandya also make a return to the Test side after missing the tour of Australia pertaining to injury. Sharma was ruled out of the Australia tour due to ankle injury while Pandya wasn't considered for the Test squad due to his reservations as an all-rounder.
- The likes of Mohammad Shami, Ravindra Jadeja, Hanuma Viahri, Umesh Yadav, and Navdeep Saini were not considered for selection for the England Tests due to injury concerns.
- The Indian selectors rewarded players for their performance in an emphatic 2-1 series win over Australia. Shardul Thakur and Washington Sundar retained their place in the side as all-rounders.
- Axar Patel was also roped in the squad considering his abilities both with bat and ball.
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India's squad for the first two Tests vs England 2021:
Rohit Sharma, Shubman Gill, Mayank Agarwal, Cheteshwar Pujara, Virat Kohli (captain), Ajinkya Rahane, Rishabh Pant, Wriddhiman Saha, Hardik Pandya, KL Rahul, Jasprit Bumrah, Ishant Sharma, Mohammed Siraj, Shardul Thakur, R Ashwin, Kuldeep Yadav, Washington Sundar, Axar Patel
Standbys: KS Bharat (wicketkeeper), Abhimanyu Easwaran, Shahbaz Nadeem, Rahul Chahar
Net bowlers: Ankit Rajpoot, Avesh Khan, Sandeep Warrier, K Gowtham, Saurabh Kumar
The first Test of India vs England Test series 2021 will be played at M.A Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai starting February 5.