New Delhi: White ball skipper Rohit Sharma was officially named captain of the Indian test team on Saturday for the upcoming two-game series against Sri Lanka, which starts on March 4.
Senior batsmen Ajinkya Rahane and Cheteshwar Pujara, who are in poor form, were dropped.
Senior wicket-keeper Wriddhiman Saha and veteran pacer Ishant Sharma were also left out of the Tests when the All India senior squads selection committee for the Sri Lanka series was named.
The Sri Lanka tour will kick off with a three-match T20 series from February 24, followed by the five-day matches from March 4.
Rookie Uttar Pradesh left arm spinner Saurabh Kumar was the only new face in the 18-man squad.
Prior to the T20 series, the selection committee, led by Chetan Sharma, decided to give Virat Kohli and Rishabh Pant a break while Shardul Thakur rested throughout the Sri Lanka series.
Meanwhile, Washington Sudar and KL Rahul were banned from the entire series.
Ravichandran Ashwin will be available subject to his condition, while Axar Patel is still recovering and is expected to be fit for the second test.
“The selection committee has discussed a lot about Rahane and Pujara. We have told them that we will not consider them against Sri Lanka, but the doors are open for them. We told them to go play Ranji Trophy,” Chetan Sharma, chairman of the Selection Committee, told reporters during a virtual press conference.
India Test Team: Rohit Sharma (C), Mayank Agarwal, Priyank Panchal, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, Hanuma Vihari, Shubman Gill, Rishabh Pant, KS Bharat, R Ashwin (fitness), Ravi Jadeja, Jayant Thakur, Kuldeep Yadav, Jasprit Bumrah , Mohammed Shami, Mohammad Siraj, Umesh Yadav, Saurabh Kumar.
India T20 squad: Rohit Sharma (C), Ruturaj Gaikwad, Ishan Kishan, Suryakumar yadav, Shreyas Iyer, Venkatesh Iyer, Deepak Hooda, Jasprit Bumrah (vc), Bhuveshwar Kumar, Harshal Patel, Mohammad Siraj, Sanju Chahal, Ja Ravindjavendra , Kuldeep Yadav, Ravi Bishnoi, Avesh Khan.
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