Jadeja, Rahul ruled out of India’s second Test against England; Sarfaraz, Washington, Sourabh called up

New Delhi: Left-arm spin all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja and middle-order batter K.L Rahul have been ruled out of India’s second Test against England, starting in Visakhapatnam on February 2.

The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) said in a statement that Jadeja sustained a hamstring injury during batting in India’s chase of 231 on the fourth day of the first Test in Hyderabad while Rahul complained of a right quadriceps pain, with the medical team monitoring the progress of the duo.

It further said the men’s selection committee has added right-handed batter Sarfaraz Khan, left-arm spinner Sourabh Kumar and off-spin all-rounder Washington Sundar to India’s Test squad for the Visakhapatnam Test.

The injuries to Jadeja and Rahul come as further big blows to the Indian team, especially after losing the Hyderabad Test by 28 runs and trailing 0-1 in the five-match series against England. The hosts are already without talismanic batter Virat Kohli, who pulled out of the first two Tests due to personal reasons, as well as senior pacer Mohammed Shami nursing an ankle injury.

On Day Four of the Hyderabad Test, Jadeja had been seen clutching his hamstring and was in discomfort after being run out for just two by a sensational direct hit from England skipper Ben Stokes, while attempting to take a single.

Jadeja and Rahul were India’s top run-scorers with 87 and 86 respectively in their first innings total of 436 in Hyderabad, with the former also clinching figures of 3-88 and 2-131 with this left-arm spin.

Washington has played four Tests for India, picking six wickets and slamming three fifties. He has earned a recall into the Test set-up after his last appearance in the format came against England at Ahmedabad in March 2021.

Sourabh had been a member of India’s Test squad for the home series against Sri Lanka in March 2022 and was called up as a replacement for Jadeja for the away series against Bangladesh later in the year.

Sarfaraz, meanwhile, has got his well-deserved, but long-awaited maiden call-up to the Indian Test team. Sarfaraz, a prolific run-getter in the last three seasons of domestic cricket for Mumbai, recently smashed a brilliant 161 as India A defeated England Lions by an innings and 16 runs in the second four-day match in Ahmedabad.

In the same game, Sundar had picked figures of 2-25 and 0-35 respectively while making 52 with the bat. Meanwhile, Saurabh slammed 77 with the bat and had figures of 1-35 and 5-104 respectively in that match.

BCCI also said Madhya Pradesh off-spinner Saransh Jain has been named as a replacement for Sundar in the India A squad for the third and final multi-day game against England Lions starting February 1 in Ahmedabad. It added that fast-bowler Avesh Khan will continue to travel with his Ranji Trophy team Madhya Pradesh and will join the Test squad if required.

India’s next Test match against England will be held at the Dr. Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy ACA-VDCA Cricket Stadium in Visakhapatnam on February 2. Uncapped batter Rajat Patidar, who came into the team as Kohli’s replacement and left-arm wrist-spinner Kuldeep Yadav looks likely options to replace Rahul and Jadeja in India’s playing eleven for the Visakhapatnam Test.

India’s updated squad for the 2nd Test against England: Rohit Sharma (C), Shubman Gill, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Shreyas Iyer, KS Bharat (WK), Dhruv Jurel (WK), Ravichandran Ashwin, Axar Patel, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohd. Siraj, Mukesh Kumar, Jasprit Bumrah (VC), Avesh Khan, Rajat Patidar, Sarfaraz Khan, Washington Sundar, Sourabh Kumar.

–IANS