3 reasons why India dropping Yash Dayal for IND vs NZ Tests 2024 is the wrong move

The senior selectors named a 15-member squad for India's home Test series against New Zealand starting on Friday, October 16. While most of the players picked themselves, one of the glaring omissions was Yash Dayal.

The left-arm seamer was picked in the squad for the two-Test series against Bangladesh earlier this year, and despite not having been picked in the playing XI, was accorded with a lot of experience by being around the seniors.

This time around, the selectors chose to go with Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj, and Akash Deep as the three sole fast bowlers in the squad. Harshit Rana, Mayank Yadav, and Prasidh Krishna - all pacers - were named as the travelling reserves along with all-rounder Nitish Kumar Reddy.

Dayal was the 16th player in the Indian squad for the Bangladesh series but could not retain his place for this one. This is a decisive move by the selectors as he is among the very few left-arm pacers in the circuit at the moment.

In this listicle, we take a look at three reasons why India dropping Dayal is the wrong move.

---

#1 It will dent Yash Dayal confidence

One of the biggest reasons why India should not have dropped Dayal is to not dent his confidence. He is one of the finest left-arm seamers in the country at the moment and deserved an opportunity to be with the squad at the very least. This may propel doubts inside the mind of the 26-year-old for no reason at all.

Dayal looked in good nick in both the Duleep Trophy and Irani Cup, and this would have been the right moment to test him against a world-class opposition. He did not do much wrong, but the selectors may have felt that he ought to be released to play in the ongoing Ranji Trophy instead.

---

#2 It will send the wrong message to upcoming youngsters

Dropping Dayal for no apparent reason from the squad (unless it is to give him more game time in the Ranji Trophy) will send the wrong message to the youngsters coming into the fray. If he had been given an opportunity to showcase his wares and then discarded, it would still have made sense.

Yash Dayal is among the handful of left-arm pacers who can wear the India Test colours any day now given his credentials alongside the likes of Arzan Nagwaswalla and Khaleel Ahmed, and being in the squad for the series against the Kiwis would have given his confidence and morale a big boost.

---

#3 It will deprive their attack of variety

Dayal may not have made it to the starting XI in any of the matches against New Zealand, but had he done so, it would have added a lot of variety to the Indian side. Getting a left-arm seamer into the squad is always helpful, and Dayal's credentials speak a lot about his abilities.

In the 25 first-class matches that he has played so far, Dayal has picked up 78 wickets at an average of 29, and this is only going to increase as time passes, and he gains more maturity and experience in the domestic circuit. Yash Dayal's accuracy is often talked about as his most attractive point.