Former Indian head coach Ravi Shastri has advocated for the inclusion of Sai Sudharsan in India’s squad for the upcoming Test series against England in June. India will head into the five-match Test series against England on the back of a crushing 3-1 series loss against Australia in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy that ended their hopes of making it to the WTC final. Meanwhile, Sudharsan has been in sublime form in the ongoing IPL, racking up over 450 runs in nine outings. His staggering performance also includes five half-centuries. However, Sudharsan is yet to make his Test debut for India. 

“I see this young man, Sai Sudharsan, for all formats of the game,” Shastri said on The ICC Review.

“He seems like a class player and my eyes would be on him certainly.” 

Sudharsan boasts a compelling county record as well, having gathered 281 runs in five matches during his appearance for Surrey over the past two years. He also has a century and a half-century. While, in first-class cricket, he has 1957 runs in 29 matches. 

“Being a left-hander in England, knowing English conditions, and just his technique, the way he plays, I think he’ll be top of the list for me from the outsiders wanting to get into this side,” Shastri said.

Shastri also urged India to have a left-arm pacer in the squad considering the conditions in England.

“It could be anyone. It could even be a white-ball specialist. I don’t like this thing when they say someone like Arshdeep Singh is a ‘white-ball specialist'.

“You need a left-armer, go and find him, whoever it is and whoever is the best of the lot – pick them. There’s Khaleel Ahmed, who again, his rhythm is good, he’s bowling well. So it’s important to get that mix,” Shastri said.