IND vs WI | Ravindra Jadeja named vice-captain for two-Test series as Karun Nair misses out

‌Ravindra Jadeja was elevated to the role of vice-captain as the BCCI’s selection committee announced a 15-member squad for the two-Test home series against the West Indies. The all-rounder will deputise captain Shubman Gill, with Karun Nair and Akash Deep being the notable absentees from the last tour to England.

Karun, who made a comeback to the Test side after a gap of eight years, had an underwhelming England series. He managed just 205 runs in four Test matches at an average of 25.62, with only one score of 50 or more in eight innings.

He will now be replaced by Karnataka batter Devdutt Padikkal, who scored a fifty on his Test debut against England during the home series in March last year. The left-handed batter was part of the Indian side that toured Australia in November 2024 and also played the first Test at Perth. With Sarfaraz Khan unavailable due to injury, the selectors went ahead with Padikkal in place of Karun.

"We expected more from Karun,” chairman of selectors Ajit Agarkar said. “Wish we could give everyone 15-20 Tests, but unfortunately, it doesn't work that way. Padikkal offers a little bit more at this point. He was in the Test squad in Australia, played against England in Dharamsala, and got a fifty there. He's shown some decent form. Frankly, we expected a bit more from Karun."

The batting order wears a settled look with KL Rahul, Yashasvi Jaiswal, and Sai Sudharsan joining skipper Gill. With regular vice-captain Rishabh Pant still recovering from a foot injury he suffered in England, Dhruv Jurel is expected to don the big gloves with N Jagadeesan named as the second wicketkeeper.

Axar Patel joins the all-rounder trio of Jadeja, Washington Sundar, and Nitish Kumar Reddy, with the left-arm spinner also bolstering the spin attack, alongside the new vice-captain and Kuldeep Yadav, for India’s first home series in this World Test Championship cycle.

With Akash Deep recovering from a niggle and being named in the Rest of India squad for the Irani Trophy, the pace attack will be manned by Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj, and Prasidh Krishna. With Burmah expected to feature in the Asia Cup T20 2025 final on September 28 and the first Test starting just three days after that, the spotlight will once again be on his workload management.

"This team has been picked for both the Tests, so he's available for both Tests. We've had a fair break after England. He didn't play the fifth Test [at The Oval] either. So there's been a five-week break. Even this tournament [Asia Cup] has been fairly spaced out till the last week. So no, he's ready and keen to play both Test matches,” Agarkar added.

The two-match series will kick off at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad on October 2, with the second Test scheduled to start in Delhi on October 10. India are currently third in the WTC 2025-27 points table behind Australia and Sri Lanka with a percentile score of 46.67.

India's squad for West Indies Tests

Shubman Gill (capt), Yashasvi Jaiswal, KL Rahul, B Sai Sudharsan, Devdutt Padikkal, Dhruv Jurel (wk), Ravindra Jadeja (vice-capt), Washington Sundar, Jasprit Bumrah, Axar Patel, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Mohammed Siraj, Prasidh Krishna, Kuldeep Yadav, N Jagadeesan (wk)