IND vs NZ: Why KL Rahul, Kuldeep Yadav and Mohammed Siraj are not playing 2nd test in Pune

KL Rahul has been replaced by Shubman Gill in the playing XI for the 2nd test against New Zealand in Pune.

The second IND vs NZ test match got underway on Thursday morning at the MCA Stadium in Pune. In the first test in Bengaluru, New Zealand had registered a historic win, their third in India and their first in 36 years.

Now, in the second test, India’s proud 11-year home record is on the line: India have won all their home test series since 2013. With this series comprising three tests and India having lost the first match, they must win the second test in Pune to keep the hopes of a series win alive.

Not to forget, there are important ICC World Test Championship (WTC) points at stake as well.

New Zealand captain Tom Latham won the toss in Pune and elected to bat first on a dry pitch. Rohit Sharma said he would have liked to bat first as well.

Responding to the loss in Bengaluru, India have made three changes to their playing XI: KL Rahul, Kuldeep Yadav and Mohammed Siraj have been dropped and replaced by Shubman Gill, Washington Sundar and Akash Deep.

On the eve of the match, head coach Gautam Gambhir had backed Rahul saying, “You don’t pick players on social media. What the team management thinks and what the leadership group thinks is very, very important.”

It feels that now Rahul has dropped in the pecking order as Sarfaraz Khan, who hit 150 in Bengaluru, was retained while Shubman Gill returned to the XI after missing the first test due to neck stiffness.

Why India dropped KL Rahul from 2nd test vs New Zealand?

KL Rahul had managed only 12 runs in Bengaluru across two innings, and while he had previously done well in his new role in the middle-order, Sarfaraz’s 150 overpowered all of Rahul’s works since his move to the middle-order last year.

The call for Kuldeep to be replaced by Sundar was a tactical one, as Sundar is an off-spinner who would turn the ball away from New Zealand’s left-handers, though, Kuldeep, being a wrist-spinner can turn the ball both ways. Plus, Sundar adds batting depth as well. In Bengaluru, Kuldeep was taken apart by the Kiwi batsmen, leaking runs at an economy of 5.4 in the first innings and 8.7 in the second innings.

Siraj’s exclusion was on the cards: in 13 tests in India, he has taken 19 wickets at an average of 36. On the other hand, Akash Deep has impressed with eight wickets in three tests at 23.

Teams:

India (Playing XI): Yashasvi Jaiswal, Rohit Sharma(c), Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, Rishabh Pant(w), Sarfaraz Khan, Ravindra Jadeja, Washington Sundar, Ravichandran Ashwin, Akash Deep, Jasprit Bumrah

New Zealand (Playing XI): Tom Latham(c), Devon Conway, Will Young, Rachin Ravindra, Daryl Mitchell, Tom Blundell(w), Glenn Phillips, Mitchell Santner, Tim Southee, Ajaz Patel, William ORourke

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