Summary: Captain Rohit Sharma explains the reason behind selecting Axar Patel over Kuldeep Yadav for IND vs ENG first test series in Hyderabad.
Indian fans have some questions regarding the selection of Axar Patel over Kuldeep Yadav in the first test series against england. The Indian Cricket Team made a comeback in the tests after a long time. The first test match took place on wednesday in Hyderabad. It was quite surprising that England opted for only three spinners and only one pacer Mark Wood.
As for the Indian team, we have on board, Ravichandran Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja and Axar Patel for the spin. Fans questioned why Kuldeep Yadav was not chosen for the Test instead of Axar Patel. Ashwin and Jadeja had their spots fixed on the team, but there was a confusion between two players, Axar Patel and Kuldeep Yadav, and the team made the tough decision to go for Patel in the test with the absence of Virat Kohli to play deep in the middle overs.
Read: Virat Kohli Opts Out of the First Two Home Test Series Against England Due to Personal Reasons
Axar Patel has proved his place time and time again in the tests, especially against England. The last time he played against Australia, he put out some really good scores on the board for India.
Explaining this tough decision, Rohit Sharma said, “It was a tough one (to leave out Kuldeep Yadav), and we thought a lot about it. Axar has done really good and bats really well in these conditions. He gives his batting depth as well. He got a really good score the last time we played against Australia. Probably that is the reason we went with Axar” during the toss.
Following this the former Indian Spinner, Anil Kumble backed this decision by saying, “This surface is more suitable to Kuldeep Yadav, it's not a grand turner. But it will certainly spin. Axar gives you a bit of batting in depth, and also because of his success against England. He bowls wicket-to-wicket. One can turn, one can go straight.”
He further stated, “Absence of Virat Kohli certainly put some pressure on Rohit Sharma. This is the first game after 12 years when you don't have Pujara, Kohli, Rahane in the XI. It certainly put some pressure on Rohit.”
