In the first two Tests, Iyer was the only senior India batter apart from Rohit Sharma to not register a significant score – he made 35 and 13 in Hyderabad, and 27 and 29 in Visakhapatnam. Considered one of India’s best batters against spin, Iyer, however, struggled both in his defence and strokeplay.
ESPNcricinfo learned that Iyer had experienced back spasms a day or two after the second Test but was cleared for selection. Meanwhile, Rajat Patidar, who made his debut in Visakhapatnam, and scored 32 and 9, has retained his spot, as has the uncapped Sarfaraz Khan.
Deep was impressive in the recent three-match red-ball series against England Lions, finishing as the leading wicket-taker for India A with 11 wickers at 18.72. Earlier, he was part of India’s Asian Games-winning squad, and was also included in the KL Rahul-led side for the ODI series in South Africa.
Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj and Mukesh Kumar are the other seamers in the squad. Mohammed Shami, who is recovering from an ankle injury, remains out of action. His last India appearance was in the ODI World Cup final in November.
The five-match Test series against England currently stands at 1-1. The third Test starts on February 15 in Rajkot, before the teams move to Ranchi for the fourth game from February 23. The fifth and final Test will be played in Dharamsala from March 7.
India squad for last three England Tests
Rohit Sharma (capt), Jasprit Bumrah (vice-capt), Yashasvi Jaiswal, Shubman Gill, KL Rahul, Rajat Patidar, Sarfaraz Khan, Dhruv Jurel (wk), KS Bharat (wk), R Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Axar Patel, Washington Sundar, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammed Siraj, Mukesh Kumar, Akash Deep
