Bhuvneshwar, Shikhar released from Indian Test team

Bhuvneshwar will not be a part of the ongoing Test series owing to his marriage on November 23. The All-India Senior Selection Committee has named Vijay Shankar as his replacement.

“The duo had made a request to the selectors and the team management to release them owing to personal reasons,” said a BCCI release.

India speedster Bhuvneshwar Kumar — who stood out with eight wickets in the first Test against Sri Lanka at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata — has been released by the Indian Test team, along with opener Shikhar Dhawan.

“The duo had made a request to the selectors and the team management to release them owing to personal reasons,” said a BCCI release.

Read: India call-up like a 'dream come true', says Vijay Shankar

Bhuvneshwar will not be a part of the ongoing Test series owing to his marriage on November 23. The All-India Senior Selection Committee has named Vijay Shankar as his replacement.

A post shared by Shikhar Dhawan (@shikhardofficial) on Nov 20, 2017 at 5:45am PST

 

Dhawan, however, will be available for selection for the third Test.

Interestingly, it is the maiden call-up for Shankar — the Tamil Nadu ODI skipper — who has 1,671 runs and 27 wickets under his belt in 32 first-class matches. But it is unlikely that he will feature in the XI, as Murali Vijay is the reserve opener.

Ishant Sharma is likely to return to the squad for the second Test.

Squad (for the second Test)

Virat Kohli (Captain), KL Rahul, M Vijay, Cheteshwar Pujara, Ajinkya Rahane (Vice-Captain), Rohit Sharma, Wriddhiman Saha (wicket-keeper), R Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammed Shami, Umesh Yadav, Ishant Sharma, Vijay Shankar