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Legendary Indian batter Sunil Gavaskar expressed disappointment with spinner Kuldeep Yadav's exclusion from the side during the second Test against New Zealand at Pune and opined that the hosts' move to add spin bowling all-rounder Washington Sundar to the playing eleven was a sign of "panic".
New Zealand skipper Tom Latham won the toss and elected to bat first in the second Test of the three-match series against India at Pune's Maharashtra Cricket Association (MCA) Stadium on Thursday.
For India, pacer Mohammed Siraj, batter KL Rahul and spinner Kuldeep Yadav sat out. Shubman Gill returns to the playing eleven after missing the first Test due to neck stiffness. Akash Deep took Siraj's place while Washington Sundar took Kuldeep's spot for his first Test appearance since March 2021.
This game is a must-win for Team India, as they are 1-0 down in the series. The Rohit Sharma-led team will have to win this game to keep their 12-year-long home supremacy alive and solidify their chances of making a hat-trick of the ICC World Test Championship (WTC) finals as a tougher Australian challenge awaits them.
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Speaking on air during the match, Gavaskar said that the move to add Sundar to boost up the batting was a move based on panic.
"I do not see a lot of teams making three changes unless there are injury concerns. Washington Sundar inclusion which tells you they are worried about their batting. More than his bowling, they need his batting down the order as the cushion. Yes, there is a lot of talk about the left-handers in the New Zealand batting unit, but I would have picked Kuldeep Yadav, who can also turn it away from a left-hander," Gavaskar said.
India (Playing XI): Yashasvi Jaiswal, Rohit Sharma(c), Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, Rishabh Pant(w), Sarfaraz Khan, Ravindra Jadeja, Washington Sundar, Ravichandran Ashwin, Akash Deep, Jasprit Bumrah
New Zealand (Playing XI): Tom Latham(c), Devon Conway, Will Young, Rachin Ravindra, Daryl Mitchell, Tom Blundell(w), Glenn Phillips, Mitchell Santner, Tim Southee, Ajaz Patel, William ORourke.
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