India lose batsman Shreyas Iyer for series opener against Australia
Indian batsman Shreyas Iyer has been ruled out of this month's first Test against Australia.
Shreyas Iyer.Iyer has been sidelined by a back injury.
All-rounder Ravindra Jadeja has been included in the squad for the first Test, subject to fitness. Jadeja recently returned to competitive cricket after recovering from knee surgery.
The Test squad also includes opening batsman Shubman Gill, who recently struck a century in the third and final T20I against New Zealand.
All-rounder Pandya, however, has not been named in the Test squad. Pandya is currently captaining the T20I team - and has not played the longest format of the international game since 2018.
"I will come back when I feel it's the right time to play Test-match cricket," said Pandya.
"Right now, I'm going to focus on white-ball cricket, which is important, and if time is right and body is fine, I'll give the long format a try."
India and Australia will meet for four Tests. Nagpur will host the series opener. Matches two, three and four will be played in Delhi, Dharamsala and Ahmedabad, respectively.