WTC Final: Major talking points from India's squad announcement

Ajinkya Rahane with KL Rahul (Pic: AFP)

Ajinkya Rahane made a comeback in the Playing XI on Tuesday for the World Test Championship (WTC) final against Australia as the BCCI announced a 15-man squad for the one-off contest, which is scheduled to be played in London at the Oval from June 7 to 11.

Aggressive batter Suryakumar Yadav, spinner Kuldeep Yadav and young stumper-batter Ishan Kishan, who were all part of the home series against Australia, failed to find a place in the team's starting XI. BCCI's five-man selection panel, Secretary Jay Shah along with skipper Rohit Sharma and Rahul Dravid met on Monday evening to decide on the squad.

As star pacer Jasprit Bumrah continues his rehabilitation from a back injury, India will not be in a state of bother as they have plenty of quick-bowling options to experiment with. Mohammad Shami, Mohammed Siraj, and Umesh Yadav have been selected as the leading pacers with Shardul Thakur and Jaydev Unadkat as the probable backups. But India has surely left themselves enough room to spice up their pace attack with the addition of medium pacer Unadkat.

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Suryakumar Yadav is No.1 among batters in the ICC T20I rankings and has become a regular feature in the India ODI line-up since making his debut in both formats in 2021, but is yet to secure his place in the Test team. He made his belated debut in the first Test against Australia in February but after making eight runs in India's only innings was left out for the remaining three matches of the series. With Yadav failing to make the most of recent opportunities in all formats, it is little wonder the T20I star has been left out of the squad for the summit clash, but past performances on the biggest stages suggest he will have more chances in the future.

After a prolonged absence from the Test side, Ajinkya Rahane has earned a recall to India's starting XI. The opening role with Rohit Sharma is up for debate, though if in-form Shubman Gill was to join the skipper at the top, it would likely mean Rahane slides into the middle order, with KL Rahul being benched.

Though unlikely, India could go bold and hand Rahul to keep the wickets, leaving out KS Bharat and including both Rahane and Gill. But then who fills in the No.6 position? In English conditions, Jadeja and KS Bharat could be moved down a spot in all likelihood, beefing up the batting. But only time will tell.