VISAKHAPATNAM: India captain Rohit Sharma won the toss and decided to bat first against Ben Stokes-led England in the second Test match of the five-game series at Rajasekhara Reddy ACA-VDCA Cricket Stadium on Friday.
Rajat Patidar received his maiden Test cap by former pacer Zaheer Khan in Visakhapatnam.
According to a statement from the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), Mohammed Siraj has been released from the India squad for the second Test against England in Vizag.
“The decision was taken keeping in mind the duration of the series and the amount of cricket he has played in recent times. He will be available for selection for the third Test in Rajkot. Avesh Khan has re-joined the team for the 2nd Test,” BCCI said in an official statement.
Heading into the second match, India lack experience in the spin department and also the hosts will be missing a mature batting line-up. Virat Kohli will miss the game due to personal reasons while KL Rahul and Ravindra Jadeja have been ruled out of the second Test due to injuries.
In the second Test, an under-pressure and under-resourced India will have to go outside the box to beat England’s courageous ‘Bazballers’. India are rarely tested at home, but after a shocking setback in Hyderabad, they have a lot to think about, and the absence of injured Jadeja and Rahul has made their work more difficult.
Meanwhile, after clinching a 28-run in the first Test, England have named three frontline spinners – Tom Hartley, Rehan Ahmed and Shoaib Bashir, who lack a bit of experience. Jack Leach who holds the highest experience is on the sidelines due to a knee injury.
Speaking at the time of the toss India captain said, “We’ll bat first. Looks like a good pitch, the pitch will do its thing, we need to play good cricket. What happened in Hyderabad is history, we need to move on. We have spoken on things we need to do, now we need to execute on our plans. I thought we batted well in the first innings but didn’t have the same intent. Similarly, in the second innings with the bowl, there was a brilliant knock by Ollie Pope. Injuries are part and parcel of the game, but that’s why we have the guys sitting on the bench. Two unforced changes – Jadeja and KL missed out, and Siraj has been rested. We’ve got Mukesh, Kuldeep and Rajat Patidar making his debut.”
England captain Ben Stokes said, “Would have batted as well. It was a great last week, but we know India will come back hard. To come from behind like we did was very pleasing. We’ll take the confidence from that, but new week now. It is an amazing atmosphere to play in for the boys. To get such an opportunity at the start of their career will do wonders for their confidence.”
India (Playing XI): Yashasvi Jaiswal, Rohit Sharma(c), Shubman Gill, Rajat Patidar, Shreyas Iyer, Srikar Bharat(w), Ravichandran Ashwin, Axar Patel, Jasprit Bumrah, Mukesh Kumar and Kuldeep Yadav.
England (Playing XI): Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Ollie Pope, Joe Root, Jonny Bairstow, Ben Stokes(c), Ben Foakes(w), Rehan Ahmed, Tom Hartley, Shoaib Bashir and James Anderson. (ANI)
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