Leg and off: Should India give Suryakumar Yadav a second go in Test cricket?
Team India's T20I captain Suryakumar Yadav has not played any Test match for India since his debut in the format against Australia in February 2023. The 33-year-old looked out of sorts during his brief stay out in the middle in the only innings he batted. He was dismissed for an ungainly 8 off 20 balls, bowled by Nathan Lyon as he attempted to drive a tossed-up delivery.
While Suryakumar has not been considered for Tests again, he hasn't given up hopes of making a comeback in the red-ball format for India. He will thus represent Mumbai in the Buchi Babu Invitational tournament in Tamil Nadu. As per a report in ESPNcricinfo, Suryakumar has informed the Mumbai selectors of his availability for the second half of the competition.
Speaking about the decision to play the Buchi Babu tournament, the swashbuckling batter told the Times of India:
"I want to play for India in all three formats. Playing in Buchi Babu will give me good practice for the red-ball tournaments this season."
Suryakumar will play in the tournament for Mumbai under Sarfaraz Khan, who made his Test debut against England in February this year.
Suryakumar should get a second chance in Tests if he proves himself in domestic cricket
Although Suryakumar's comeback to Test cricket seems rather difficult, there is no doubt that he should get a second chance in the format if he proves himself in domestic cricket. Apart from the Buchi Babu tournament, he would also be hoping for a chance in the Duleep Trophy which will be played between four teams picked by the national selectors.
If we look at Suryakumar's first-class record thus far, he has played 82 matches and has scored 5628 runs at an average of 43.62, with 14 hundreds and 29 half-centuries. It is not an exceptional record by any sense of the imagination, which is why there were questions raised when he was picked for the Test team for the first time on the back of his exploits in the T20I format.
By deciding to feature in the Buchi Babu tournament, the experienced Mumbai cricketer has made it clear that he doesn't want to be seen as a T20I specialist, which is the case right now considering he has been dropped from the ODI squad as well. His thought process is encouraging, but he will have to come up with exceptional performances in domestic cricket to press his case for a Test return.
Is there a middle-order vacancy in the Indian Test team?
India's previous Test series was at home against England in January-March this year. They won the five-match series by a comprehensive margin of 4-1. If we look at the middle slots in Team India's current Test squad, there is plenty of competition for places.
KL Rahul notched up two big scores in his last three Test matches before getting injured. Shreyas Iyer was dropped after the first two matches of the series against England due to form and fitness issues. However, once he passes the test on both counts, it could only be a matter of time before he makes a return to the Test team.
Given his all-round skills, Ravindra Jadeja picks himself in the Test XI. Not only in home conditions but he is preferred over Ravichandran Ashwin even in overseas Tests due to his versatility. Meanwhile, Sarfaraz Khan and Devdutt Padikkal were handed their Test debuts against England, and both made their chances count.
Sarfaraz (26), who had been waiting for the opportunity for a long time, smashed 200 runs in five innings at an average of 50, with three half-centuries. Following some excellent performances for Karnataka in domestic cricket, Padikkal was also handed his red-ball debut for India in the fifth and final Test against England in Dharamsala. He contributed a defiant 65 in India's innings and 64-run triumph.
Given the number of options available in the middle-order, India are unlikely to go back to Suryakumar in the Test format. However, all hope is not lost for the Mumbai dasher. If he keeps performing in red-ball cricket and some injury or form issues crop up in the Indian team, he can be considered again for Test cricket.