India cricket team skipper Rohit Sharma shed light on Tanush Kotian’s inclusion in India’s squad for the remaining Tests in Border-Gavaskar Trophy. The uncapped spinner was picked ahead of Kuldeep Yadav and Axar Patel as Ashwin’s replacement in the squad. The Tamil Nadu spinner’s sudden retirement after IND vs AUS 3rd Test left a spot vacant in the side that needed to be filled in before the Boxing Day Test.
Why was Tanush Kotian picked in India squad?
Speaking at the pre-match press conference, Rohit pointed out that Tanush Kotian had the experience of playing in Australia as he had featured in India A’s tour earlier in November. Sharma pointed out that while Kuldeep Yadav had some visa issues and wasn’t 100% fit, Axar Patel had become a father recently and hence Kotian was picked above the two stars.
“Tanush Kotian played here in Australia played a month back. Kuldeep I don’t think he has a visa and he is not 100% fit. Axar has a baby recently. Tanush is ready, we really want a back up in case we need two spinners here or Sydney. Tanush has shown what he’s capable of,” Rohit Sharma said.
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The 26-year-old has impressed everyone with his ability in the Ranji Trophy 2024-25 season. Apart from taking 29 wickets at 16.96 in 10 matches, Kotian had also scored over 500 runs in Mumbai’s title-winning run.
| Matches | Runs | Bat Avg | 100s & 50s | Wickets | Bowl Avg | Bowl SR | 5w & 10w |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 33 | 1525 | 41.21 | 2 & 13 | 101 | 25.70 | 46.4 | 3 & 0 |
