Opener Abhinav Mukund Tuesday returned to India's Test squad after a gap of more than five years for a one-off match against Bangladesh starting next week in Hyderabad. The left-handed batsman, who played the last of his five Tests for India against England in 2011, was included in the 16-man squad following a fine domestic performance. Mukund, 27, accumulated 849 runs including four centuries for the south Indian state of Tamil Nadu in the 2016-17 edition of the Ranji Trophy. Fit-again wicketkeeper Wriddhiman Saha made his way back after recovering from a thigh injury sustained during the recent home series against England last year. Parthiv Patel, who scored two half-centuries in three games against England during Saha's absence, failed to make the cut. Injured paceman Mohammed Shami, who missed the last two Tests against England, was also not picked by the MSK Prasad-led selection committee that met in New Delhi. Batsman Ajinkya Rahane and all-rounders Jayant Yadav and Hardik Pandya returned to the team after suffering injuries during the England series, which India won 4-0. The Virat Kohli-led India, which is ranked No. 1 in the world, is hosting Bangladesh for the first time in a Test match. Squad: Virat Kohli (captain), Murali Vijay, Lokesh Rahul, Cheteshwar Pujara, Ajinkya Rahane, Karun Nair, Wriddhiman Saha, Ravichandran Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Jayant Yadav, Umesh Yadav, Ishant Sharma, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Amit Mishra, Abhinav Mukund, Hardik Pandya. West Indian Russell banned West Indies all-rounder Andre Russell was banned Tuesday for one year for a doping whereabouts rule violation. The two-time Twenty20 World Cup winner was revealed to have committed the violation 11 months ago after registering three filing failures in 2015. That constitutes a failed drugs test under World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) rules. "Mr Russell was found guilty of a doping violation," Hugh Faulkner, chairman of the independent anti-doping tribunal that handed out the punishment, said in a statement. The 28-year-old Jamaican, who helped the West Indies win its second World T20 title in 2016, will be banned for a year from Jan. 31. WADA rules state that athletes across all sports must inform their local anti-doping agencies where they will be for at least one hour each day to facilitate drug tests.
