Former England skipper Michael Vaughan urged the Ajit Agarkar-led selection panel to add Suryakumar Yadav and Kuldeep Yadav to the Test side post BGT 2024-25. SKY made his Test debut against Australia in 2023 but could only score eight runs.
On the other hand, Kuldeep Yadav has scalped 56 wickets in 13 Test matches at an impressive average of 22.16 but the left-arm wrist spinner was unavailable for selection for the tour of Australia since he has been referred to the BCCI Centre of Excellence after the end of the Test series against New Zealand for long term resolution of his chronic left groin issue.
Vaughan reckons the two Yadavs will definitely add more strength to the Indian Test team.
Speaking on the Club Prairie Fire YouTube Channel, Vaughan said, “There’s two names I would bring into India’s Test squad – Kuldeep Yadav, I would have him around the Test side all the time. And I wouldn’t be scared of putting someone like Suryakumar Yadav in the Test team.
“I just feel he [Suryakumar] has the flair and the ability to take on the opposition and if you can have both Rishabh Pant and Suryakumar in the team, then, around that, the likes of Gill, Kohli will have to be rock solid and play the conventional way. Not negative but [batting] conventionally that will allow the firecrackers to have a go.”
Vaughan reckons India’s gun fast bowler Jasprit Bumrah is the right candidate to take over the Test captaincy baton from Rohit Sharma.
“I would give the captaincy to Jasprit Bumrah, and the reason is the two performances that India were at their finest here in Australia were Perth and the SCG. If he’d not got injured, I honestly think they would have won that game; the pitch was doing so much. So, I would give him the captaincy but beside him, I’d have someone like Shubman Gill as the vice-captain.”
India will next host England for five T20Is and three ODIs.
