Three players who missed out on a place in the Indian Test squad 

Earlier today, the BCCI announced the Indian Test squad for the ICC World Test Championship Final against New Zealand. The board also declared the squad for the 5-match Test series against England in the United Kingdom.

Due to the COVID-19 travel restrictions, the selectors have named a few standby players for the six matches. The squad features some regulars like Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma, Ajinkya Rahane, Jasprit Bumrah, Ishant Sharma, Rohit Sharma, Cheteshwar Pujara and others.

Interestingly, some key players are missing from the Indian Test squad for the ICC World Test Championship Final and the England series. Here's a look at three players who missed out on a place in the team.

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3. Hardik Pandya

Baroda-born all-rounder Hardik Pandya warmed the benches during the home Test series against England earlier this year. Despite being cleared to play, Pandya did not earn a place in the playing XI for the four Test matches against England.

Many fans felt the team management excluded Hardik Pandya from the Indian Test squad because the conditions favored the spin bowlers. The spinners were ultimately more successful than the pacers on the wickets in Chennai and Ahmedabad. Hence, it was a sensible decision to leave Hardik Pandya out.

However, the conditions in the United Kingdom will assist fast bowlers. Hardik Pandya was also a part of the Indian Test squad during the previous away series against England.

Pandya had set up India's only win during that Test series by picking up a five-wicket haul in Nottingham. Overall, Pandya scalped ten wickets and scored 164 runs in four Test matches. His best figures were 5/28 while his highest score with the bat was 52*.

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2. Prithvi Shaw

Prithvi Shaw is in top form right now

Prithvi Shaw had a forgettable series during India's recent tour of Australia. However, the right-handed batsman has regained his touch in recent months. He dominated the bowlers in the domestic arena and continued to do the same in IPL 2021.

Shaw was among the leading run-getters in the first half of IPL 2021. However, the selectors still did not give him a spot in the Indian Test squad. It seems like the selection committee has given priority to Shaw's red-ball form and left him out of the team.

The duo of Shubman Gill and Rohit Sharma performed exceptionally against Australia and England. Perhaps, Shaw could have been a part of the standby players group. However, it appears as though the Delhi Capitals star will now have to spend the next few months preparing for the latter half of IPL 2021.

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1. Bhuvneshwar Kumar

Bhuvneshwar Kumar was one of the top performers in the Indian Test squad during the 2014 tour of England. The right-arm pacer played all five Test matches, picking up 19 wickets, including a couple of five-wicket hauls.

Kumar also scored 247 runs in the 5-match Test series. Batting in the lower middle-order, he recorded three half-centuries. Looking at his numbers in both departments, fans know how well Bhuvneshwar performed for the Indian cricket team in English conditions.

The Indian pacer is currently dealing with an injury issue, but he is likely to recover to full fitness before the England series. It was a bit surprising to see Kumar not earning a place in the Indian Test squad.