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England are all set to play against India in a full-fledged series where they will take on each other across four Tests, three ODIs and five T20 Internationals as well. Meanwhile, the England Cricket Board (ECB) recently announced the squad for India series for the first two Tests where Jonny Bairstow who is considered as one of the key parts of their batting unit was rested.However, the decision to rest Bairstow didn’t go well with many including Michael Vaughan and Kevin Pietersen. The former player lashed out at the ECB’s decision for not selecting a few best of the players for the first two Tests of the series. Later on, cricket analyst and commentator Harsha Bhogle has also shared his views over the ECB’s decision as well.The renowned commentator took to Twitter and said that he is puzzled with England’s decision to rest players from an important series which could help them reach to the World Test Championship (WTC) final. He also accused the ECB of depreciating the importance of the tournament, which has been made to give more importance and priority to the longer format of the age as well. Bhogle also raised the question if the players have been rested because they wanted to or they needed to.
He added, “Like most, I am perplexed by England’s decision to rest players who would make their best XI from a series that is vital to their chances at the WTC. In a sense, being key proponents of the WTC, they have diminished its importance.”He further added, “Bairstow and Buttler are key players of England’s white ball squad and they will also be available for the IPL that follows. It tells me that England have, subtly, prioritised winning the T20 World Cup over the WTC.”England squad for India 2021 (first 2 Tests): Joe Root (Captain), Ben Stokes (Vice-captain), Jos Buttler (Wicket-keeper), Jofra Archer, Moeen Ali, Rory Burns, Zak Crawley, James Anderson, Dom Bess, Olly Stone, Chris Woakes, Stuart Broad, Ben Foakes, Dan Lawrence, Dom Sibley, Jack Leach
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