Jaydev Unadkat set to replace star Indian bowler for the Test series against Bangladesh

The left-arm pacer Jaydev Unadkat has been called as the replacement for Mohammad Shami for the Test series against Bangladesh, starting on Wednesday, December 14. Unadkat had bowled splendidly in the recently concluded Vijay Hazare Trophy, where Saurashtra clinched the title. 

The 31-year-old will be setting a record for the lengthiest gap between two Tests by an Indian player, which is currently held by former Indian wicketkeeper Parthiv Patel. Unadkat played his only Test back in 2010, against South Africa in Centurion. Since then, he has played seven ODIs and 10 Twenty20 Internationals but was never considered for the five-day game.

Shami is currently undergoing rehab for his shoulder injury at the National Cricket Academy in Bengaluru. He picked up the right shoulder niggle during a training session prior to the Bangladesh tour. 

Will Rohit Sharma feature in the Test series against Bangladesh?

Unadkat was the highest wicket-taker in the recent edition of the Vijay Hazare Trophy as he snapped 19 wickets in the 10 games. He is the most successful speedster in Indian domestic cricket, grabbing 353 wickets in the 96 matches he had played so far, which includes a record-breaking 2019-20 Ranji season in which he took 67 wickets en route helping his side, to their maiden Ranji Trophy title.

The Saurashtra skipper is the second player in the Indian Test squad who has arrived in Bangladesh for the Test series as a replacement. The other player is Abhimanyu Easwaran. The Bengal player led India A to a 1-0 win in the four-day series against Bangladesh A. He has now been called up as cover for Rohit Sharma, who has flown home to Mumbai to recover from a finger injury he picked up at slips during the second ODI. 

Likely squad for 1st Test (December 14-18): KL Rahul (C), Shubman Gill, Abhimanyu Easwaran, Cheteshwar Pujara, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, Rishabh Pant (WK, VC), KS Bharat (WK), Saurabh Kumar, Ravichandran Ashwin, Axar Patel, Kuldeep Yadav, Shardul Thakur, Jaydev Unadkat, Mohd. Siraj and Umesh Yadav.