Former India spinner Pragyan Ojha suggested that struggling Indian batters Shreyas Iyer and Rajat Patidar should be dropped in case Virat Kohli and KL Rahul are made available for the 3rd Test against England, starting February 15 in Rajkot.
India registered an emphatic victory over England in their second Test at Visakhapatnam, leveling the five-match series 1-1 before they head to Rajkot. Prolific performances by Yashasvi Jaiswal, Shubman Gill, Ravichandran Ashwin and Jasprit Bumrah played a pivotal role in securing their comeback in the series after losing the first Test in Hyderabad.
In the Vizag Test, both Jaiswal and Gill displayed batting brilliance, with Jaiswal securing a double hundred in the first innings and Gill scoring a century in the second. Amid heavy criticism for his recent batting struggles, 24-year-old Gill silenced many critics with his 104-run innings.
However, Shreyas Iyer has struggled to get going in the recent past. He has gone 13 innings without a fifty-plus score in Tests and he failed to convert his starts in both innings of the 2nd Test in Visakhapatnam. On the other hand, debutant Rajat Patidar was undone by spin in both innings as he failed to live up to expectations.