Priyank Panchal, who has been roped in as the replacement of Rohit Sharma, did not expect to make it to India's Test squad. Last night, Rohit got ruled out of the red-ball series against South Africa due to the hamstring injury.
Panchal had just come back to India after leading the A side in the first two matches against South Africa A. He fared decently in the series and scored 120 runs in three innings.
"It was just three days back that I returned home from South Africa. I hadn't even unpacked properly, and now, I find myself landing in Mumbai," Panchal was quoted as saying to Times of India.
Panchal has been doing well for his stateside Gujarat. Ranji Trophy 2016-17 was the best calendar year for him as a player as he amassed 1,310 runs in ten matches.
Panchal was selected as a standby player in the home series against England. As Rohit is now not available, the 31-year-old batsman has been included in the main squad for the South Africa series.
"I've been doing well since the last few years for Gujarat and India A, and I've been waiting for this chance for many years, but I didn't expect to get this chance. This is a pleasant surprise," Panchal added.