• Home
  • Cricket Analysis
  • Sarfaraz Khan And Rohit Sharma Likely To Drop These 3 Players In Border Gavaskar Trophy

Sarfaraz Khan And...? Rohit Sharma Likely To Drop These 3 Players In Border-Gavaskar Trophy

Sarfaraz Khan will likely be dropped in Australia [Source: PTI]Sarfaraz Khan will likely be dropped in Australia [Source: PTI]

India had a disastrous outing against New Zealand, as the visitors handed them a humiliating three-nil whitewash on their home soil. Led by Rohit Sharma, India incurred a shambolic home series defeat, putting their World Test Championship (WTC) final qualification in serious doubt. 

India's poor batting was the primary reason behind their downfall against the Kiwis. While Rishabh Pant batted like a lone warrior, his teammates could barely put up a fight on spin-friendly decks. The hosts never looked comfortable against New Zealand's rampant spin battery, which helped the Blackcaps record a historic series win on Indian soil after a long hiatus. 

Therefore, considering the Border-Gavaskar Trophy holds significant importance for India, the Rohit Sharma-led leadership group might make several bold changes to keep their WTC final hopes alive. In such a scenario, three players seem to be on the verge of being dropped from India's playing XI for the first Test in Perth. 

Sarfaraz Khan

Hailed for his remarkable consistency in the domestic circuit, Sarfaraz Khan won the team management's trust following a scintillating ton in the first Test in Bengaluru. However, he couldn't capitalise on his golden touch further, recording abysmal outings in the subsequent affairs in Pune and Mumbai. 

Therefore, considering he is vulnerable to pace and seam movement, India might consider dropping him and bringing KL Rahul back into their playing XI for the Perth Test. The veteran Karnataka batter has also been asked to play the second unofficial Test against Australia-A to prepare for the Border-Gavaskar Trophy. So, in all likelihood, he will replace the Mumbaikar in the Indian XI for the first Test versus Australia. 

Ravichandran Ashwin

Since making his Test debut, Ravichandran Ashwin has been a force to reckon with the ball for India in red-ball cricket. However, the veteran off-spinner looked off-colour in the New Zealand Tests, with Washington Sundar out-bowling him on spin-friendly tracks. 

Besides providing India with batting depth, Sundar's ability to generate overspin makes him a genuine contender for a spot in India's playing XI Down Under. The pace-friendly deck in Perth won't allow the visitors to go with three spinners, so with Ravindra Jadeja retaining his place, India might prefer the in-form Sundar over Ashwin for the second all-rounder's role. 

Mohammed Siraj

Mohammed Siraj had a promising start to the year, registering a sensational six-wicket haul against South Africa in the Cape Town Test. However, he hasn't been the same bowler since then, managing only 13 wickets at a horrible average of 48.46 in Test cricket. 

So, with Jasprit Bumrah returning to the playing XI and Akash Deep emerging as India's second-best bowler, the visitors could swap Siraj with a proper hit-the-deck pacer like Harshit Rana or Prasidh Krishna for the first Test on Australian soil. Both Rana and Krishna can use Perth's bouncy tracks in their favour and make things tough for the Australian batters.