India, May 25 -- Over the years, the Indian Premier League has become, if not the only, then one of the biggest criteria for selection in the Indian cricket team. Just last year, Harshit Rana got his big break after impressing for Kolkata Knight Riders in IPL 2024. Nitish Reddy was another classic example, as were T Natarajan and Umran Malik before them. So when Sai Sudharsan and Arshdeep Singh were included in India's 18-member squad to tour England for a five-Test series was picked yesterday, their names did not really come as a surprise.

The BCCI also gave domestic cricket importance, evident from Karun Nair's return to the national fold after eight long years. Arshdeep's inclusion was only a matter of time, considering the number of ...