KS Bharat To Cheteshwar Pujara: 4 Players Who Might Not Play Test For India Again After WTC 2023 Final

India suffered a crushing defeat by 209 runs in the final of the ICC World Test Championship 2023 against Australia at the Oval in London on Sunday (June 11). In reply to the target of 444 runs, the Rohit Sharma-led side could only manage to score 234 runs in 63.3 overs. The defeat in the summit clash against Pat Cummins extended India’s decade-long wait for an ICC title for some more time. India last won an ICC title in 2013, when, under MS Dhoni’s leadership, they won the Champions Trophy by beating England by 5 runs in the final. The loss against Australia on Sunday was the second straight edition in a row when Team India suffered a defeat in the final of the WTC . In 2021 as well, they went down by eight wickets against New Zealand.

After going down against the Baggy Greens in the 2023 final, India is likely to make some big changes in the Test squad going forward, and some of the high-profile players who have underperformed are likely to face the sack. Here’s a look at four such players who are unlikely to play Test cricket for India again in the future:

KS Bharat: In the absence of injured Rishabh Pant, KS Bharat was India’s first choice wicketkeeper-batter for the 2023 Border-Gavaskar Trophy and WTC 2023 final against Australia, but the 29-year-old Andhra batter failed to live up to the expectations. In five matches, he could only manage to score 129 runs, because of which he is unlikely to get a chance again now. India’s next Test assignment is against the West Indies in July, and in that series, Ishan Kishan is expected to get an opportunity, and then later, when India will face South Africa in December, Pant will hopefully get fit and available.

Cheteshwar Pujara: India’s No. 3 Test batter, Cheteshwar Pujara, has only managed to score one century in the last WTC cycle, and his batting average has also dropped below 30 since the start of January 2020. He was dropped from the Test side last year as well due to poor form but managed to make a comeback after scoring a mountain of runs in county cricket, but now at the age of 35, he is unlikely to get an opportunity again and, in his place, India could try the likes of Sarfaraz Khan or Hanuma Vihari, keeping the future in mind.

Umesh Yadav: Umesh Yadav played in the final of WTC 2023 but was only able to take two wickets (both in the second innings). He looked off-colour, and with the likes of Mohammed Shami, Mohammed Siraj, Jasprit Bumrah, and Shardul Thakur higher than him in the pecking order, the 35-year-old Vidarbha pacer might have also played his last game for Team India.

Rohit Sharma: Indian skipper Rohit Sharma is 36 already, and by the time the final of the next WTC takes place, he will turn 38. There is a very high possibility that he won’t be playing for India till then due to his age, and so if he will not be available in 2025, then India could leave him out from the start of the 2023–25 WTC cycle itself and give a chance to someone like Yashasvi Jaiswal or Ruturaj Gaikwad in the side, so that they can be a part of the entire cycle and get ready for the big games in the future. As far as captaincy is concerned, the world’s No. 1 Test all-rounder, Ravindra Jadeja, who plays in all three formats for India, could be given the leadership charge for the next couple of years.