IND vs NZ 2021: "That was a bit surprising" - Deep Dasgupta on Shreyas Iyer's inclusion into the Test team ahead of Suryakumar Yadav 

Former India wicketkeeper-batter Deep Dasgupta has addressed the vacant spot in the middle-order due to the absence of Virat Kohli in the first Test.

Stand-in skipper Ajinkya Rahane revealed earlier that Shreyas Iyer will be making his Test debut ahead of Suryakumar Yadav.

Suryakumar Yadav was a late addition to the Test squad following the injury to KL Rahul. The middle-order batter was on the sidelines during the England tour, where he was an injury replacement alongisde Prithvi Shaw.

Shreyas Iyer, on the other hand, earned his maiden call-up for the home series against New Zealand and will feature tomorrow in Kanpur. Speaking during a live Q&A session on his YouTube channel, Dasgupta said:

"That was a little bit surprising, you know Surya was there in England, but now Shreyas is not only here now but he is playing as well.

"But, Shreyas has got a very good first-class record, he's scored over 4500 runs with an average of over 50. So, he's earned his stripe, it would be wrong to say that he has not."

Dasgupta also replied to a question which was directed towards Rahane's potential future with the team and the probable players to replace him in the playing XI.

He felt that the series against New Zealand should not be Rahane's final chance to redeem himself.

"There are enough players to replace Rahane. Gill, I feel is better suited in the middle order. There is Shreyas Iyer, Suryakumar, and Hanuma Vihari. Obviously, Rahane's last two years have not gone that well but, I don't think this will be the last chance for Rahane, it will be unfair to judge him on the basis of solely this series.

"This series is very important 100%, but he needs to be there for the South Africa series and a call can be taken midway through that tour regarding his future," Dasgupta opined.

Rahane has been battling poor form for a prolonged period of time now with a match-winning ton in the Boxing Day Test last year being the lone bright spot.

Calls to exclude him in the latter half of the tour of England were very vocal, but the management chose to persisit with the deputy.

It's not going to be a cakewalk for the Indian team: Dasgupta

Dasgupta also outlined the threat posed by the New Zealand in terms of their preparation and their energy levels, considering that a majority of the squad were not a part of the T20 World Cup.

"It's not going to be a cakewalk for the Indian team because one reason why the New Zealand team is so consistent is because their preparation and homework are very good. So, this team will be well prepared. Also, many of these players were not a part of the World Cup.

"They have all come prepared from home, people like Ross Taylor, Henry Nicholls, Neil Wagner, Ajaz Patel, and Tom Latham. These people have had plenty of time to prepare. New Zealand also have good spinners, they have bowled well in the subcontinent as well," Dasgupta elaborated.

Team India will embark on their next challenge in the next cycle of the World Test Championship against New Zealand.

The two sides will take the field tomorrow (November 25) in Green Park, Kanpur for the first of the two match Test series.