Veteran pacer Jaydev Unadkat is out of contention for India's first Test against Bangladesh starting on Wednesday, December 14, at the Zahur Ahmed Chowdhury Stadium in Chattogram, because the pacer is yet to reach Bangladesh for the Test series.
Unadkat was called up as a replacement to Mohammed Shami, returning to the Test team after 12 years, but his return has been delayed as the Saurashtra fast bowler is still stuck in India.
Sources within the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) have informed the media that the 31-year-old has not received his visa papers while the logistics department of the board are working hard to ensure his smooth travel to Bangladesh. As of Tuesday, Unadkat is believed to still be at home in Rajkot.
In a regular situation, the BCCI organises visas for all those players who could be in the reckoning for selection in case of any delays to avoid any logistical issues. But in the case of Unadkat, a pre-booking was not done as his inclusion came as a surprise. The left-arm pacer last played a Test back in December 2010 and might not have been on the radar of the BCCI logistics department although he was on the mind of the selection committee.
Unadkat's absence could allow for the call-up of Navdeep Saini but the team management is yet to make the final choice for the XI. The team might have to make a choice between Saini and a third spinner, who could either be Saurabh Kumar, with the left-arm spinner called up as a back-up for Ravindra Jadeja and who was in good form ahead of the Test series, while India A took on Bangladesh A. Another option might be Kuldeep Yadav.
Meanwhile, in the absence of skipper Rohit Sharma, KL Rahul will lead the side and Shubman Gill is set to open the batting for India. Abhimanyu Easwaran is touted to get a maiden call-up and the two pacers are expected to be Umesh Yadav and Mohammed Siraj. Ravichandran Ashwin and Axar Patel are expected to be the two certain spinners. Only the 11th player is left for the last-minute decision.
