IND vs NZ: Yash Dayal's absence reason from India Test squad revealed

India announced its squad for the three-match Test series against New Zealand without much surprise. However, one notable absentee from the squad was the young left-arm seamer from Uttar Pradesh Yash Dayal.

Dayal was in India's squad for the Test series against Bangladesh, in which the Men in Blue registered a 2-0 series win over the visitors. He did not get a game in the series but had a great experience while sharing the dressing room.

It was also his maiden international call-up and a big moment for him. With the Border-Gavaskar Trophy coming up, Dayal is seen as a potential option to be in India's touring squad. He is a left-arm, which will give him an edge over other options.

Also read: Revealed: Why Mohammed Shami was not picked in India's Test squad vs New Zealand?

Why was Yash Dayal not included in India's squad for New Zealand Tests?

According to the reports, Yash Dayal injured his shoulder badly during the first day of the Ranji Trophy on October 11. Dayal was playing for his state side Uttar Pradesh against Bengal. The match between these teams is being held in Lucknow.

He had injured his shoulder badly during first day against Bengal https://t.co/2CjezLlTZd

— Kushan Sarkar (@kushansarkar) October 12, 2024

After injuring his shoulder, Dayal left the field immediately. He bowled just 10 overs on Day 1 and picked up the prized wicket of Bengal opener Abhimanyu Easwaran. He finished with 1-20 in 10 overs.

However, the 26-year-old returned back to the field on Day 2 and helped UP finish off the Bengal innings for 311. Dayal cleaned up Bengal's tail and finished with 4-27 in 14.2 overs.

The selectors saw Yash Dayal's injury as a big issue and decided not to select him for the series. India now have Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj, and Akash Deep as the fast bowling options for the New Zealand Tests.

Yash Dayal numbers in first-class cricket

Yash Dayal has a good amount of experience playing first-class cricket and is seen as a potential fast-bowling option for India in red-ball cricket. With India lacking a left-arm fast bowling option, Dayal provides the team an extra edge with his skills.

The young left-arm seamer from UP has played 25 first-class matches in which he has picked up 78 wickets at an average of 29.42 with the best of 5-48 in an innings. He is also in line to be selected in India's squad for the tour of Australia.

Dayal's exclusion also indicates that the pitches against New Zealand are likely to be spin-friendly and India is likely to play with the maximum of two fast bowlers in a Test. While one pacer has reduced from the Bangladesh Tests, the no. of spinners is still the same.

Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja are the frontline spinners while Axar Patel and Kuldeep Yadav are the other two spin options in the squad.

India squad for New Zealand Test series