IND vs BAN: Rishabh Pant or Dhruv Jurel? Gautam Gambhir reveals who will keep wickets in 1st test

Rishabh Pant is back in the test squad for the first time since his car accident in December 2022.

India will begin a crucial two-match test series against Bangladesh on September 19 in Chennai. The second test will be played in Kanpur.

In their 10-test season, India will host Bangladesh for two tests and New Zealand for three tests before flying to Australia for a five-match test series for the Border-Gavaskar Trophy. All three series are part of the ongoing ICC World Test Championship 2023-25.

This is the first test series for new head coach Gautam Gambhir, for whom there is a conundrum regarding two spots in the playing XI: the wicket-keeper’s spot and a middle-order batsman’s spot.

On the eve of the first test, Gambhi confirmed that Dhruv Jurel and Sarfaraz Khan will have sit out in the first test against Bangladesh despite doing well in their debut test series earlier this year against England as Rishabh Pant and KL Rahul return to the test setup.

We just pick the players who fit the XI: Gautam Gambhir

Pant is set to return to the test XI for the first time since his car accident in December 2022. He was the first-choice keeper-batter before his accident. He had cemented his place in the test XI. The left-hander cracked an attacking fifty in the first round of the Duleep Trophy and is not set to take back his spot from Jurel.

Jurel made his debut against England and impressed everyone with his strokeplay and temperament in scoring 190 runs in four innings at an average of 63 with a best of 90.

Further, Rahul is set to slot in the XI, replacing Sarfaraz Khan, who hit three fifties against England in five knocks. Rahul played the first test against England but missed the next four due to an injury. He scored 108 runs in the Hyderabad test and prior to that had hit a terrific hundred in Centurion.

Speaking in a press conference on Wednesday, Gambhir said, “We don’t drop anyone. We just pick the players who fit the XI. Jurel is a phenomenal player, but when Pant is coming in, sometimes people have to wait. Same with Sarfaraz. There will be opportunities, but you have to wait,”

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