ENG vs IND 2025: 5 times an Indian player was dropped immediately after his Test debut ft. Sai Sudharsan

Sai Sudharsan made his Test debut in the first match of the ongoing five-match series between India and England in Leeds. The visitors lost the opening Test and are now contesting the second match at Edgbaston, Birmingham.

On the back of impressive domestic performances, Sai Sudharsan broke into the Test squad for the ongoing England series. The young left-hander did not have a memorable debut as such, failing to even open his account in the first innings.

Following an unimpressive showing on his debut, Sudharsan was dropped for the Edgbaston Test. Interestingly, he is not the only Indian men's player to be dropped right after their debut.

Here are the five instances of an Indian player being dropped immediately after his Test debut.

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#5 Vinay Kumar

Former India and Karnataka pacer Vinay Kumar made his Test debut in 2012 against Australia at Perth, coming into the side on the back of consistent domestic performances.

In the first innings of the Perth Test, Vinay Kumar bowled 13 overs and gave away 73 runs, picking up the wicket of Michael Hussey only. He did not get an opportunity to bowl again as Australia won the game by an innings and 37 runs.

He was dropped from the following Test in Adelaide and never played the format for India again.

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#4 Karn Sharma

Wrist-spinner Karn Sharma made his Test debut in Adelaide during the 2014 Australia tour. He came into the side in place of Ravichandran Ashwin.

In the first innings, Karn Sharma bagged the wickets of David Warner and Michael Clarke, giving away 143 runs from 33 overs. He picked up two more wickets in the second innings, returning with figures of 2/95 from 16 overs.

While he picked up four wickets, he was expensive and India lost the Test as well. He was dropped for the next match and never played in the format for India again.

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#3 Naman Ojha

Former wicketkeeper-batter Naman Ojha made his Test debut in 2015 against Sri Lanka in Colombo. He made 21 runs off 54 balls batting at number seven in the first innings. The second innings saw him score 35 runs off 63 deliveries. India went on to win the Test by 117 runs.

While Naman Ojha got to starts in both innings, he failed to convert them into big scores. He was dropped from the next Test as Wriddhiman Saha returned to take his place.

It proved to be the first and last Test of Ojha's career as he did not feature in the format for India ever after.

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#2 Suryakumar Yadav

Star India and Mumbai Indians (MI) batter made his Test debut in 2023 against Australia. He was picked on the back of his brilliant performances in the white-ball formats.

However, Suryakumar Yadav could not translate the same in the longer format. In the first innings, he made just eight runs off 20 balls batting at number six. He did not bat again as India won by an innings and 132 runs.

It was the opening Test of the series and Suryakumar Yadav was dropped for the next Test. Since then, the right-handed batter has not played in the longest format for India.

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#1 Sai Sudharsan

As mentioned above, Sai Sudharsan made his Test debut in Leeds against England in June 2025.

He was dismissed for a duck in the first innings, failing to make an ideal start. While he did score a well-made 30 off 48 balls in the second innings, he could not convert the start.

It remains to be seen whether Sai Sudharsan will get another opportunity with three more Tests to go in the series.