Sai Sudarsan, Karun Nair in contention for place in Test squad

Sai Sudarsan, Karun Nair in Contention for Place in India's England Tests Squad

India's squad for the upcoming tour of England is expected to be announced on Saturday, with Shubman Gill set to be named captain of the Indian red-ball side.

The squad will comprise virtually the same names that toured Australia for the Border-Gavaskar Trophy in November-January, with Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli missing due to their retirement from the longest format.

Sai Sudharsan and Karun Nair, who have performed well in the last domestic season, are likely to be rewarded with berths. Nair, who had been a prolific scorer in the domestic circuit, could be picked in the squad. Sudharsan, currently the leading run-scorer in the IPL, is also expected to earn a place.

KL Rahul is expected to partner Yashasvi Jaiswal at the top, with Gill likely to move down to No. 4. This could open up the No. 3 slot for someone like Sudharsan or Nair.

The pacers will be Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj, Prasidh Krishna, Akash Deep, and Harshit Rana, with Ravindra Jadeja and Washington Sundar being the spinners. The two wicketkeepers will be Rishabh Pant and Dhruv Jurel, and the lone specialist spinner could be Kuldeep Yadav.

The likely squad includes:

• Shubman Gill
• Yashasvi Jaiswal
• KL Rahul
• Karun Nair
• Sai Sudharsan
• Sarfaraz Khan
• Ravindra Jadeja
• Washington Sundar
• Nitish Kumar Reddy
• Rishabh Pant
• Dhruv Jurel
• Jasprit Bumrah
• Mohammed Siraj
• Prasidh Krishna
• Akash Deep
• Harshit Rana
• Shardul Thakur
• Kuldeep Yadav