India’s selectors seem to have factored in the raw pace of towering Punjab speedster Gurnoor Brar and the classical left-arm spin of Rajasthan’s Manav Suthar before giving them their maiden national call-up for the one-off Test against Afghanistan beginning June 6.Brar, standing tall at 6 feet 5 inches, also finds a spot in ODI squad for the three-match series beginning on June 14 against the same opponents. Delhi pacer Prince Yadav has made his way to the ODI squad at the back of impressive performances in the IPL.In the spin department, Harsh Dubey will give company to fellow left-arm pacer Suthar, the two coming in place of Axar Patel, who has been dropped and veteran Ravindra Jadeja, who has been rested.PTI reflects on their journey to the doors of the national team.Gurnoor BrarBrar has been picked for India for the very first time and that too in both the formats. The 25-year-old has been a regular at India training as a net bowler with the team management seeking his services to tackle the rising ball from length.A hit the deck bowler, Brar has a strong supporter in his Punjab teammate and India captain Shubman Gill.Gill has got Brar on board for his IPL franchise Gujarat Titans. The fast bowler has been part of the franchise since 2025, but is yet to get a game. India bowling coach Morne Morkel also rates Brar highly for his ability to generate extra bounce from length, something the South African too used to exploit with his tall stature.India are expected to play Mohammed Siraj and Prasidh Krishna in the one off Test. If that is the case, Brar, a Dale Steyn fan, won’t mind spending more time in the sacred India nets.Brar has taken 52 wickets in 18 first class games at an average of 27.30.Prince YadavThe Delhi and Lucknow Super Giants seamer has attracted eyeballs with his performances in the ongoing Indian Premier League. He swings the ball at decent speed, has a good yorker and his deliveries skid off the surface.He is only picked in the ODI team but going forward, he could be part of the Indian team’s red ball plans, especially with the tour of New Zealand scheduled later this year.Prince is the son of Najafgarh-based Railway Protection Force’s ASI Ram Niwas Yadav. Not long ago, he skipped the Delhi Police exam to chase excellence in cricket and with this India call-up, the gamble has well and truly paid off.Manav SutharSuthar, the 23-year-old from Ganganagar in Rajasthan, has been knocking on the doors of the Test team for the last couple of years. A regular at India A level, Suthar has finally got the coveted opportunity, with Jadeja rested and Axar Patel sidelined.Suthar has taken 129 wickets in 29 games including three 10-wicket match hauls and six five-wicket hauls.Jadeja is not going to be around forever and Axar operates on a flatter trajectory. Considering that, the selectors have opted for the classical left-arm spin of Suthar, who is not afraid to flight the ball and has a free flowing action.With Kuldeep Yadav and Washington Jattvibedar expected to feature in the playing XI in the one-off Test, it could be a toss-up between him and Vidarbha’s Harsh Dubey for the third spin option.Harsh DubeyLike Suthar, Dubey too has been on the India fringes following consistent performances in red-ball cricket. His record 69 wickets and 476 runs for Vidarbha in the 2024-25 Ranji Trophy season brought him into national reckoning.He doesn’t flight the ball as much as Suthar but is highly effective. His record speaks for itself, with 133 wickets in 27 first class games, including nine five-wicket hauls.Called in as a replacement player for Jattviberisers Hyderabad in IPL last year, Dubey realised his dream by getting the prized wicket of superstar Virat Kohli.”He gives it a proper tweak that is the start. When you do that, you get drift, and more importantly it goes off the surface that much quicker,” spin great Anil Kumble had told ESPN cricinfo in his praise of Dubey, who also has nine first-class fifties to his name. PTI