On Sunday, Rishabh Pant made a comeback to the Test team after almost 20 months, as India announced a 16-man squad for the opening match of their two-Test series against Bangladesh, beginning September 19.
Virat Kohli also rejoined the Test squad after missing the five-Test series against England earlier this year.
Pant, who last played in the Test series against Bangladesh in December 2022, suffered a car accident shortly after and made his return to competitive cricket in the IPL this year. He was part of the T20 World Cup-winning team before this return to Test cricket.
Despite earlier expectations that Mohammed Shami would return for this Test series, the right-arm seamer was not included in the squad. On the other hand, left-arm seamer Yash Dayal received his maiden call-up to the Indian team for the first Test.
India’s Test season starts with the opening Test against Bangladesh in Chennai, followed by the second Test at Green Park Stadium in Kanpur from September 27 to October 1.
So far, India and Bangladesh have contested 13 Test matches, with India winning 11 and the remaining two ending in draws.
India’s squad for the first Test is: Rohit Sharma (c), Yashasvi Jaiswal, Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, KL Rahul, Sarfaraz Khan, Rishabh Pant (wk), Dhruv Jurel (wk), Ravichandran Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Axar Patel, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammed Siraj, Akash Deep, Jasprit Bumrah, and Yash Dayal.