As India get ready for a tough tour of England in which they will play five Test matches without many senior players, the skipper Shubman Gill and head coach Gautam Gambhir will have to make some very tough calls on the batting and bowling front.
First of all, there will have to be a call on who will take up Rohit Sharma's role as an opener Yashasvi Jaiswal or Abhimanyu Easwaran. Whether Karun Nair will make a return to the India middle order, and an even tougher question about which matches will pace spearhead Jasprit Bumrah will play out of the five that are on schedule. Bumrah is available only for four Tests to manage his workload.
Gambhir said they have not yet decided which four matches Bumrah will play. But he said Nair has a good chance of making it to the playing XI as he has done well recently both in domestic cricket and also for India A.
"We haven't taken that call. A lot will depend on the results of the series, and we will have a discussion with him. That is something that I am sure he is also aware of," said Gambhir during the pre-departure press conference at the BCCI headquarters here on Thursday.
Asked about not having Bumrah for the entire tour, Gambhir said they have a great mix of bowlers. "I think we have picked enough bowlers, and we have enough pace bowlers. A lot of the fast bowlers are in a great space to be able to win matches from any situation, any position. Obviously, someone like Jasprit Bumrah, whenever he would play, it would be a great sight for us.
"Always difficult to replace Bumrah, but as I said in the Champions Trophy, it is an opportunity for someone to put their hand up. And there is enough quality there. "But I think we have a great mix of bowlers, and we have a great set of bowlers. Look, it is always difficult to replace someone like Bumrah. But we have got enough options," Gambhir said.
Asked about the possibility of Nair making a return to the playing XI after his brilliant domestic season in which he has fought back into the squad after being dropped soon after scoring a triple hundred for India, Gambhir said players in form and doing well will get chances, adding that he always like to give some players enough opportunities.
"Look, it's just great for domestic cricket because all the youngsters that are playing domestic cricket, we know the importance of domestic cricket. If you keep going back to domestic cricket, those are never shut down. It's always good for us.
"He (Karun Nair) has played a bit of country cricket as well, and he's in really good form. He scored a double hundred for India 'A' (in the first unofficial Test against England Lions). It's always good for us that these guys are in good form and are getting runs as well. So his experience will definitely come in handy. Hopefully, he can deliver. And more importantly, we will protect him, we will not judge someone by just one or two Tests.
"As much as you guys have done, which you do because I think if someone has scored eight hundred, I think he will be able to produce as well. So that we can showcase his talent at this level as well," said Gambhir.
Gambhir was also asked about the possibility of Shreyas Iyer getting into the side as a replacement player during the tour, even though he had earlier said that picking the squad is the job of selectors and not his.
"Look, anyone can, if they are in good form. We can only pick 18, and the chairman of selectors has already answered that question. For me, I think it's always about being open to people who are in good form, who will come and do the work," said the India team's head coach.