No place for Karun Nair as Aakash Chopra picks his India XI for first test against England

Aakash Chopra picked KL Rahul and Yashasvi Jaiswal as openers for India.

Cricketer-turned-commentator Aakash Chopra has picked his India playing XI for the first test against England. The Indian Cricket Team are set to lock horns with England in a five-match test series. The opening test will begin on June 20 at Headingley in Leeds.

The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) announced the squad for the series last month. Shubman Gill was appointed as the new captain in tests, while Rishabh Pant has been named as the new vice-captain of the side.

In his playing XI, Chopra picked Yashasvi Jaiswal and KL Rahul as the openers. Notably, one opening slot got vacant following Rohit Sharma’s retirement from the longest format. Moreover, Chopra kept debutant Sai Sudharsan at the one-down position and Gill at the crucial number four position.

Aakash Chopra snubs Karun Nair from India’s playing XI for the first test

Interestingly, Chopra overlooked Karun Nair and Washington Sundar in his team. Sundar played a part with the bat and ball in the last few series. Karun Nair, who made a return to the test team after eight years, recently slammed a double century for the A side in the first unofficial test match against England Lions.

In the pace department, he went ahead with senior pacer Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Shami. However, he neglected Akash Deep and Arshdeep Singh and picked Prasidh Krishna as the third pacer for the side. Nitish Reddy, who hammered a century in the previous test series against Australia, also found a place in his team along with Shardul Thakur, who made a comeback to the side.

Aakash Chopra’s India XI for the first test against England: Yashasvi Jaiswal, KL Rahul, B Sai Sudharsan, Shubman Gill (C), Rishabh Pant (WK), Nitish Kumar Reddy, Ravindra Jadeja, Shardul Thakur, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj, Prasidh Krishna.

Meanwhile, England have also revealed their squad for the first test. Ben Stokes will lead the side against the visitors. The series will mark the first campaign of both teams in the ICC World Test Championship 2025-27 cycle.

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