With a slew of experienced campaigners retiring from Test cricket, India are undoubtedly in the midst of a transition phase, with different roles to be filled. One of the departments that would need some reinforcements is spin bowling. Ravichandran Ashwin has hung up his spiked boots from all forms of the game. Ravindra Jadeja, his long-time spin colleague, is now 37 years old. In that context, outside of Kuldeep Yadav and Axar Patel, who are the likely options for the selectors to look at? At RevSportz, we compile the list.
Manav Suthar:
The left-arm spinner, who can also add useful runs with the bat, might very well make his Test debut in the one-off game against Afghanistan. The Gujarat Titans and Rajasthan cricketer plucked 18 scalps at an average of 15.94 in the 2025-26 Ranji Trophy. In 29 first-class games, he has also bagged 129 wickets at an average of 25.76.
Manav doesn’t exactly belong to the modern school of left-arm spin bowling in the sense that he depends more on flight and beating the batter in the air. The wicket of Cooper Connolly in the unofficial Test series versus Australia A last year exemplifies the point. Manav is also useful with the bat, having notched up 945 runs at an average of 25.54.
Harsh Dubey:
Harsh Dubey is another left-arm spinner who is in contention to make it to the playing XI for the one-off Test against Afghanistan. Unlike Manav, Harsh depends more on bowling quicker through the air and getting a bit of turn at pace. The salient feature of Harsh’s bowling is that he gets a fair amount of purchase even while bowling quicker through the air. Basically, he gives the ball a fair amount of rip. In 27 first-class games, Dubey has bagged 133 wickets at an impressive average of 23.26. He has also crossed 1,000 runs with the bat in first-class cricket.
Lest we forget Shams Mulani, who continues to plug away in the domestic circuit. The left-arm spinner has taken 265 wickets at an average of 24.54. He has also compiled 2,523 runs at an average of 32.76. Mulani believes more in bowling quicker through the air.
Meanwhile, Tanush Kotian could be the off-spinner India are searching for. Kotian, who is known as a utility cricketer, averages as high as 42.5 with the bat, alongside averaging 27.48 with the ball in first-class cricket.
Nikhil Kashyap, the off-spinner from Haryana, could also find himself playing at a higher level in the near future. The tall spinner possesses natural flight and gets enough purchase. It shouldn’t come as a major surprise that he has already accounted for 26 wickets in just six first-class games.
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