Sai Sudharsan Dropped for Second Test Despite Promising Signs. Sai Sudharsan, who made his Test debut in the first match against England at Headingley, managed scores of 0 and 30 across two innings. However, the young batter failed to retain his place in the playing XI for the ongoing second Test at Edgbaston in Birmingham.
Despite showing glimpses of potential during his second innings knock of 30 off 48 balls, Sudharsan was left out of the team— a decision that surprised many. The team management opted for a different balance, bringing in Washington Sundar to partner Ravindra Jadeja as a second spin option.
With Sudharsan’s exclusion, Karun Nair was promoted to No. 3, while Sundar slotted in at No. 7, adding more depth to India’s batting lineup.
In addition to Sudharsan’s omission, India made two more changes to the side. Jasprit Bumrah was rested as part of workload management protocols and was replaced by Akash Deep. Meanwhile, Nitish Kumar Reddy came into the XI in place of Shardul Thakur.
Sudharsan, who batted at No. 3 in his debut Test, had a tough start with a first-innings duck but showed promise in the second innings. However, his inability to convert the start into a bigger score ultimately worked against him in team selection for the second Test.
Twitter Erupts as India Drops Sai Sudharsan for Second Test Against England
Fans on Twitter expressed their frustration after the Indian team management excluded Sai Sudharsan from the playing XI for the second Test against England. Many users criticized head coach Gautam Gambhir and his support staff, calling the decision disappointing and unjustified.
Gambhir era not holding back
— Shruti Pandey 🚩 (@Pandeyshruti252) July 2, 2025
BCCI -Sai Sudharsan dropped for no reason -Kuldeep is yet to get a game#INDvsEND #ENGvIND #GautamGambhir pic.twitter.com/RdeEg2GpaV
If Sai Sudharsan had been from another state and Karun Nair had been from Tamil Nadu, then Karun would have been dropped and Sai would have been retained in the 11s@BCCI 🤡 #ENGvsIND
— Demon 𝘽𝙇𝘼𝘾𝙆𝙔 ᵀᴹ (@BlackyDaa) July 2, 2025
On the basic of one match, a talent like Sai Sudharsan was dropped from the Playing-11. On the other hand, Karun Nair is returning to international cricket after 7 years. Although he could not do anything in the first match but he is being given a chance.
— Satish Mishra 🇮🇳 (@SATISHMISH78) July 2, 2025
How much cricket is…
It's a such a shame that talented Sai Sudharsan will be dropped after one match and Karun Nair who can serve max 2 years to India will be backed.
— Sujeet Suman (@sujeetsuman1991) July 2, 2025
Why we can't invest in youngster? Sai is the future not Karun Nair. Another bad move by Gautam Gambhir and team management. pic.twitter.com/JCepalbp1M
Feel for Sai Sudharsan. 💔
— Choudhary kapil (@Kapilmalik3011) July 2, 2025
Dropped after just 1 Test — a tough call, purely due to team combination.
He showed promise. Hope he gets another shot soon. pic.twitter.com/o8zFmAcVot
Dropping Sai Sudharsan after just one game—especially when it's a debut or a return after a long break—feels harsh.
— MR . AK (@anandhumanoj666) July 2, 2025
Every player deserves at least 2 to 3 consistent chances to settle in and prove themselves.
A single game should never define a career.#SaiSudharsan… pic.twitter.com/CTrkpKeQox
You should be slapped if you drop a player after one bad game.
— Enaam (@iamenaam) July 2, 2025
This is injustice to Sai Sudharsan.
No clarity on Karun Nair role as well.
Why so much panic after playing the first test well for the first 4 days!!
Gautam Gambhir’s decision to drop Sai Sudharsan for the second Test is honestly baffling. A young player shows promise on debut, and instead of backing him, you bench him? Makes no sense. pic.twitter.com/LME200pOGc
— The Cricket Pundits (@TCPofficial_X) July 2, 2025
Why give a Test debut to Sai Sudharsan if he was going to be dropped after 1 match?? It's not like He is injured. pic.twitter.com/LlbdXBzTTJ
— Aditya Saha (@Adityakrsaha) July 2, 2025
After the retirements of Rohit, Virat, and Ashwin, a key question for the new India era – and the main skill needed from management – is how they blood youngsters into the Test team.
— Ben Jones (@benjonescricket) July 2, 2025
Anyway, 23 year old Sai Sudharsan has been dropped after one Test, where he batted first drop
Sarfaraz Khan: Scored 150, had two failures, DROPPED!
— Sameer Allana (@HitmanCricket) July 2, 2025
Dhruv Jurel: Had one failure, DROPPED!
Devdutt Padikkal: One failure, DROPPED!
Nitish Kumar Reddy: Scored century, had one failure, DROPPED!
Sai Sudharsan: Bad debut. Got DROPPED!