MUMBAI: Opening batsman Shikhar Dhawan has been dropped from India’s Test squad for the upcoming West Indies series, the country’s cricket board announced on Saturday.

Dhawan — who was the player-of-the-tournament during the just-ended Asia Cup in the UAE — had a forgettable England tour with the left-handed opener managing just 162 runs in eight innings as top-ranked India lost the Test series 1-4.

Uncapped batsman Mayank Agarwal and rookie fast bowler Mohammed Siraj were included in the 15-man team that will be led by Virat Kohli, who was rested in the Asia Cup 50-over tournament won by India.

The national selectors decided to rest fast bowlers Jasprit Bumrah and Bhuvneshwar Kumar due to their ‘recent workload’, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) said in a statement.

“Both Ishant Sharma and Hardik Pandya were not considered for selection, as they are yet to recover from their injuries,” the BCCI added.

The first Test will be held in Rajkot starting on Oct 4, with the second in Hyderabad from Oct 12.

The two teams will also play five One-day International and three Twenty20 Internationals after the Test series.

The world’s top Test side will then head to Australia for a full series starting November.

Squad: Virat Kohli (captain), Ajinkya Rahane (vice-captain), K.L. Rahul, Prithvi Shaw, Mayank Agarwal, Cheteshwar Pujara, Hanuma Vihari, Rishabh Pant (wicket-keeper), Ravichandran Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammed Shami, Umesh Yadav, Mohammed Siraj, Shardul Thakur.

Published in Dawn, October 1st, 2018