Former Indian spinner Murali Kartik was shocked not to see Manav Suthar in the Test squad for the forthcoming New Zealand tour. Interestingly, Ravindra Jadeja, Washington Sundar and Kuldeep Yadav have been picked as spinners in the Test squad.
Suthar, who made his Test debut in the only Test against Afghanistan, scalped 23 wickets in his three-match Test career, excelling on the recent two-match Sri Lankan Test tour. Speaking to a select media on Sony Sports Network, Kartik shared his views on Suthar missing out on the flight to New Zealand.
“It’s a tough one for me, to be very honest, because when I saw the squads, I was shocked myself. Manav Suthar has been the find of the season, especially post-Ashwin, we have been searching for a Test match bowler. And the most important thing is the rationale which is used behind not picking Kuldeep sometimes is that he is not as good a bat as others,” Murali Kartik said.
“But Manav Suthar fits that bill too. And more importantly, take the batting away. I don’t even look at somebody as a batter. Yes, you do want to contribute handy runs, especially in the modern version of the game, because you don’t want any guys who cannot bat. But the most important thing is Manav Suthar has been the best bowler on view in the Test matches that we’ve had of late,” he added.
“I was massively surprised that he has not been picked. So, I don’t know the logic. It’s not as if they cannot take one extra player. And also, most importantly, he’s your wicket-taking bowler. Kuldeep Yadav is a wicket-taking bowler, but again, Kuldeep Yadav is a very different story,” Kartik concluded.
India’s Test squad vs NZ: Shubman Gill [C], Yashasvi Jaiswal, KL Rahul [VC], Devdutt Padikkal, Rishabh Pant [WK]*, Dhruv Jurel [WK], Ravindra Jadeja, Anshul Kamboj, Jasprit Bumrah, Prasidh Krishna, Akash Deep, Sai Sudharsan, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Washington Sundar, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammed Siraj
Note: *Subject to fitness clearance
NZ vs IND Test Series Schedule:
First Test, 19-23 November, Wellington
Second Test, 27 November-1 December, Christchurch
