Deserving domestic players who have been ignored for WI Test Series

Rajat Patidar and Abhimanyu Easwaran [Source: AFP]

The BCCI recently announced India’s squad for the two-Test series against the West Indies at home, with matches scheduled in Ahmedabad and Delhi starting October 2. While the 15-player squad includes some big names, several domestic stars who were in excellent form have been surprisingly left out. 

These players have been scoring heavily and impressing in domestic cricket, yet they didn’t make the cut. Let’s look at who they are and why they might have been overlooked.

Rajat Patidar

Rajat Patidar has been one of the most consistent performers in domestic cricket recently. He led Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) to their maiden IPL trophy in 2025 and also shone in other domestic tournaments. 

Before the IPL, he scored 529 runs in 11 innings in the Ranji Trophy, showing that he was in superb red-ball form. In the Duleep Trophy, he scored 382 runs in 5 innings at an impressive average of 76.40 and even won trophy as the captain of Central Zone.

As shown in the table, Patidar in his first-class career has played 71 matches, scored 5,120 runs, including 15 hundreds and 26 fifties. Despite this, he was left out, likely because:

• Patidar is still recovering from a hand injury, which kept him out of a few IPL matches this season. Selectors might want him fully fit and match-ready before bringing him into the national team.
• Another factor could be his debut against England in 2024, which didn’t go as planned. In that series, Patidar scored just 63 runs across three innings, which might have affected the selectors’ confidence in him for the upcoming Tests.

Abhimanyu Easwaran

Abhimanyu Easwaran has been a consistent performer in domestic cricket. In India A matches against England A, he scored 164 runs in 4 innings, averaging 41.75. In his first-class career, he has played 104 matches, scoring 7,885 runs with 27 hundreds and 31 fifties.

Even with these numbers, the domestic star missed out because:

• Yet, Easwaran missed out on the West Indies squad, largely due to the existing strength and form of India’s top-order batsmen. KL Rahul and Yashasvi Jaiswal have been performing well at the top, and with Sai Sudharsan already included, the team had little need for an additional specialist opener.
• Additionall, the selectors have also included wicketkeeper-batter Narayan Jagadeesan, who can slot into the top order if required. His dual role as both a keeper and a batter offers greater flexibility to the side, which may have tilted the balance against Easwaran’s inclusion.

Manav Suthar

Rising left-arm spinner Manav Suthar has also caught the selectors’ attention with consistent performances for India A. He impressed with a five-wicket haul against Australia A in a four-day match, showing his ability to take crucial wickets in challenging conditions. 

In 24 first-class matches, Suthar has already taken 103 wickets, demonstrating excellent control and temperament.

However, he was left out possibly because:

• India already have four spinners in the team, Ravindra Jadeja, Washington Sundar, Axar Patel, and Kuldeep Yadav, with three of them being all-rounders.
• Moreover, India head coach Gautam Gambhir seems to favour multi-dimensional players who contribute with both bat and ball, making it difficult for a specialist like Suthar to fit into the current squad composition.

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