Sanjay Manjrekar wants BCCI to introduce 3 new batsmen and bowlers for India's tour of WI

Former Indian cricketer and commentator Sanjay Manjrekar calls for strict selection calls for India's tour of West Indies

Former India cricketer Sanjay Manjrekar urged the BCCI selectors to take a tough stance and decisions for the Indian Test team in the aftermath of their losing the World Test Championship 2023 final to Australia and include new faces in the red-ball format for the upcoming West Indies tour.

India's squad for the two-match Test series in West Indies is likely to be announced by next week. The series also marks the beginning of India's campaign in the third edition of the World Test Championship.

The declining form with bat of Cheteshwar Pujara is a major concern. Ajinkya Rahane performed admirably in the WTC final after making a comeback after 14 months, but it is unclear how long he will be able to hold onto his No. 5 ranking at the age of 35.  

While Rohit Sharma, the skipper, is not getting any younger, Virat Kohli has partially returned to his best in Test cricket, though he is still far from it.

Jasprit Bumrah, Rishabh Pant, KL Rahul, and Shreyas Iyer are still injured and Manjrekar feels that the time is right for the selectors to blood in youngsters.

When it comes to bating, they just have to look at first-class performers: Sanjay Manjrekar

Players like Rajat Patidar, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Sarfaraz Khan, and Abhimanyu Easwaran are pounding on doors, and the next Caribbean trip may be the perfect opportunity to give some of them a try.

Former India batter Sanjay Manjrekar believes India should include at least three new batters and as many new fast bowlers for the West Indies series.

"The game changers for Australia in the WTC final - Steve Smith and Travis Head - don't play a lot of T20 cricket. So we have to find guys who are not going to be fatigued or don't have to make the adjustments from IPL to Test cricket. About time we start rewarding the guys who are doing well in first-class cricket. And not just runs. The selectors could look at players who have it in them to be future Test players and succeed in foreign conditions. I would like to see at least three new batters come into play in the picture and new fast bowlers," Manjrekar said on ESPNCricinfo.

When it comes to bating, they just have to look at first-class performers and not just the amount of runs the player has scored. if you closely observe our domestic cricket then you will find players for No.3, 4, 5 who has a decent defensive technique, has an appetite for runs and that's your guy, that's the guy to back," he added.

We should have backup pacers ready - Sanjay Manjrekar

It has been widely reported that Mohammad Shami might be rested for the Test series and Mohammed Siraj might also play only one of the two Tests. Umesh Yadav’s time is reportedly up in the Test arena, with Jaydev Unadkat slotted to replace him.

India's pace battery also looks thin after the injury to Jasprit Bumrah and Prasidh Krishna and a few other youngsters.

"Just a few months back I was taking pride in the depth that we have in our seam-bowling department and suddenly Bumrah is not fit. There are quite fit others like Prasidh Krishna so maybe for Test cricket, India need to create a new line of fast bowlers. Now you should look for specific test players. If somebody gets injured, we should have backups ready. Like Scott Boland. Came in straightaway and made an impact. We had to go back to Umesh Yadav which is not a good sign," he concluded.