2017 Irani Trophy: Rest of India squad to face Gujarat announced

What’s the story?

India's first-choice Test wicket-keeper Wriddhiman Saha will return to first-class cricket after recovering sufficiently from a thigh strain which had ruled him out of the last three matches in the England series. The 32-year old has been included in the Rest of India squad for the upcoming Irani Cup clash against Ranji Trophy Champions Gujarat.

Saha’s national team-mate Cheteshwar Pujara will lead the team that contains fellow Test-capped batsmen in Karun Nair and Abhinav Mukund. The likes of Yuvraj Singh and Rishabh Pant were not considered for selection as they have found a place in the Indian squad for the limited-overs series against England.

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The Rest of India squad was the first assignment for the trimmed selection panel featuring MSK Prasad, Devang Gandhi and Sarandeep Singh. As per the Lodha committee’s recommendation, Gagan Khoda and Jatin Paranjpe had been removed from the panel during last week.

While Saha was away from the Test side nursing the thigh strain, Parthiv Patel was called-up to replace him for the latter part of the England series. Earlier today, the left-hander led Gujarat to their maiden Ranji Trophy title with a 196-ball 143.

The heart of the matter

Mukund’s experience at the top of the order will provide a massive fillip to the side and allow batsmen such as Pujara, Nair and Manoj Tiwary to play themselves in. The in-form 18-year old Ishan Kishan could play as a specialist batsman with Saha taking over the gloves. Rest of India’s bowling attack boasts of considerable variety in both the spin and pace department.

Rest of India Squad: Abhinav Mukund (Tamil Nadu), Akhil Herwadkar (Mumbai), Cheteshwar Pujara (Saurashtra) (captain), Karun Nair (Karnataka), Manoj Tiwary (Bengal), Wriddhiman Saha (Bengal) (wk), Kuldeep Yadav (Uttar Pradesh), Shahbaz Nadeem (Jharkhand), Pankaj Singh (Rajasthan), K Vignesh (Tamil Nadu), Siddarth Kaul (Punjab), Shardul Thakur (Mumbai), Akshay Wakhare (Vidarbha), Ishan Kishan (Jharkhand) (wk) and Prashant Chopra (Himachal Pradesh).

What next?

The Irani Cup tie is slated to take place at the Brabourne Stadium in Mumbai from January 20^th to 24^th. Meanwhile, the third ODI between India and England will occur at the Eden Gardens on the 22^nd. The T20I series is scheduled to begin on Republic Day at the Green Park Stadium in Kanpur with the squad assembling beforehand on the 24^th.

Sportskeeda’s Take

The presence of as many as three current members of the top ranked Test team should tilt the scales in Rest of India’s favor. However, Gujarat have played remarkable cricket over the season with each player aware of his role in the side. As always, the Irani Cup match will see individual brilliance pitted against a well-oiled unit.