Who said what - top 4 expert reactions to India's squad for IND vs WI 2025 Tests ft. Dinesh Karthik

India announced their squad for the upcoming two-Test series against the West Indies on Thursday, September 25. Shubman Gill was remains the captain of the side, while senior all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja was appointed as the vice-captain in the absence of the incumbent, Rishabh Pant, due to injury.

There were several glaring omissions from the squad, with the biggest name missing being that of Karun Nair. The senior Karnataka and Vidarbha batter had fought his way back into the Test squad after exhilarating performances in domestic cricket, but was axed in favor of Devdutt Padikkal.

Nair had a moderate series against England, where he amassed 205 runs in four Tests. Along with him, opener Abhimanyu Easwaran too was dropped from the squad, albeit without having made his Test debut yet. The selectors chose to add more heft with spin in the squad instead of investing in Easwaran.

As was expected, the announcement of the squad divided opinion across the country. Experts, pundits and the general public took sides in this debate and came up with better alternatives.

In this listicle, we take a look at the top four expert reactions to India's squad announcement for the West Indies series:

#4 Aakash Chopra

Former India opener Aakash Chopra felt bad that Karun Nair and Abhimanyu Easwaran were left out of the squad.

While Nair had given the selectors a reason to drop him thanks to his underwhelming show in England, Chopra said that the treatment meted out to Easwaran was painful to see, especially after all the work the latter had put in.

"The Test squad has been announced, but somehow, the conversation revolves around those who missed out, and not those who got picked. Rishabh Pant has been sidelined with an injury, Ravindra Jadeja has been appointed as vice-captain, but there is no place for Karun Nair. The selectors clearly mentioned that they expected more from the latter, and it is understandable," Chopra said on his YouTube channel.

"Similarly, Shreyas Iyer is not available because he has taken a sabbatical from red-ball cricket for six months. But one feels for Abhimanyu Easwaran; what else do you expect him to do? He has done so well in domestic cricket, and has been a part of the Indian squad for so long, but he has not been selected for this series," he added.

#3 Varun Aaron

Ex-India seamer Varun Aaron was another expert who reacted to the announcement of the squad. Speaking on ESPN Cricinfo, Aaron felt that India were now taking Test cricket extremely seriously.

The former speedster said that in his first home series as captain, Shubman Gill would not want to give even an inch to the West Indies. This was in response to the 0-3 whitewash India received from New Zealand last year.

"After the drubbing we got against New Zealand, I don't think Gautam Gambhir or Shubman Gill, because it is his first home series as captain, I'm sure he does not want to give even an inch, not even a quarter. I think they are very serious about Test cricket. India have made a lot of accommodations for [Jasprit] Bumrah. If you are managing someone's workload to that extent, you want him in every series. I think they might manage Bumrah's workload in the ODIs in Australia as well. He might just play two," Varun Aaron said on ESPN Cricinfo.

"All three (spinners) can bat, that is the best part of the Indian set-up, where you have somebody like Axar, Jadeja, and Sundar. I hope that Kuldeep Yadav gets a game in this series, but if they choose that route, they can have 3 spinners who can bat. Kuldeep Yadav has been waiting too long in the wings, and he has been putting up performances in every competition, except Test cricket," he added.

#2 Dinesh Karthik

Former India wicketkeeper-batter Dinesh Karthik spoke on Cricbuzz regarding Karun Nair's exclusion from the Test squad. Karthik felt that the selectors were moving on from Nair.

However, the ex-Tamil Nadu captain felt that Nair would himself admit that he should have done better in the chances he got during the start of the England series. The selectors have now chosen to go with Devdutt Padikkal.

“The fact that Karun Nair is not looked at any more means they are moving on from him, which is very tough on him. I think he played in one of the toughest series on tough pitches. But in all fairness, he’ll look back [at it] himself and say, ‘Could I have scored more runs in a couple of innings at the start, in the first three Tests?’ Because in the last Test, he got a 50 on a tough pitch,” said Karthik.

“I can promise you if he was playing this series, he would get runs. It’s almost a given, the way he’s batting. The fact is, they are saying, ‘Big series, we have him an opportunity and he didn’t deliver. So we move on to somebody young for the future’," he added.

#1 Irfan Pathan

Former India pacer Irfan Pathan spoke about the announcement of the squad on his YouTube channel. The former left-arm seamer spoke glowingly about Ravindra Jadeja's promotion as vice-captain of the side.

He also mentioned the dual ability of Dhruv Jurel to play as a wicketkeeper-batter and pure batter. Pathan also felt that Karun Nair, who was axed from the squad, would not be given many opportunities in the future.

"This will be Shubman Gill's second series as India's captain. Ravindra Jadeja has been appointed the vice-captain, which is a just reward for everything he has done for Indian cricket. Of course, Rishabh Pant is unavailable due to injury, but Dhruv Jurel and N Jagadeesan have been named in his stead. Jurel, who is a wicketkeeper-batter, has a lot of ability and can also play as a sole batter in the future," said Pathan.

"The same goes for Axar Patel, who can be expected to perform with the bat. As for Karun Nair, he was given just one series, where he performed modestly - neither too well nor too poorly. But now, it appears as if the selectors are keen on moving on from him, and I do not think that Nair will be given too many further opportunities. Devdutt Padikkal, in his place, is younger, and it appears as if he will be given more chances," he added.