India vs England: Virat Kohli's decision to prefer Sundar, Nadeem over Kuldeep Yadav baffles Twitterati

Add as a preferred source on Google

Chennai, February 5: India elected to play with three spinners in the opening Test against England on Friday (February 5) at MA Chidambaram Stadium which marks the beginning of international cricket in the country.

India captain Virat Kohli lost the toss and stunned all when he announced India's playing eleven against Joe Root and band. Kohli shocked all by including Jharkhand spinner Shahbaz Nadeem in the playing eleven. Nadeem along with spin spearhead Ravichandran Ashwin and local boy Washington Sundar will be up against the England batting attack at the Chepauk. It was no less than good luck for Nadeem as he was immediately included in the playing eleven and got to play his second Test.

While chinaman Kuldeep Yadav was once again overlooked and the move came as a surprise to many for the Uttar Pradesh cricketer has been eagerly waiting for an opportunity in the red-ball cricket. Kuldeep was part of the Indian side on Aussie tour as well but the left-arm spinner kept warming the benches Down Under even as R Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja missed matches.

Earlier in the day, the BCCI announced that spin bowling all-rounder Axar Patel has been ruled out of the match after complaining of pain in his left knee. Left-arm spinner Nadeem and Rajasthan leg-spinner Deepak Chahar have been included in the main squad from the list of standby players.

"Axar Patel has been ruled out of the first Paytm Test against England. The all-rounder complained of pain in his left knee during Team India's optional training session on Thursday," BCCI secretary Jay Shah stated in a press release.

"He is being monitored by the BCCI Medical Team and while his detailed reports are awaited, he will not be available for selection for the opening match," Shah further stated. Axar was picked as a replacement for star all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja, who is recovering from an injury and was in line to make his Test debut. "The All-India Senior Selection Committee has added spinners Shahbaz Nadeem and Rahul Chahar to India's squad. Both Nadeem and Chahar have been training with Team India as part of the standby group of players," the release also stated.