India’s injury woes worsened in their ongoing five-match Test series against England with all-rounder Nitish Kumar Reddy being the latest player to join the list after the 22-year-old suffered a knee injury while training at the gym. India already had concerns about Rishabh Pant, who suffered an index finger injury in the third Test at Lord’s while pacer Arshdeep Singh injured his bowling arm during a practice session and had to get stitches.
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On the other hand, Akash Deep has also suffered a groin niggle and is doubtful for the upcoming Manchester Test from July 23. India have already added Anshul Kamboj to the squad as a backup for Arshdeep.
Furthermore, talismanic pacer Jasprit Bumrah is restricted to playing only three out of the five matches owing to workload management
Now with Nitish’s news, India face a pressing concern of how to field the playing XI as they aim to level the series after currently trailing 1-2. Let’s take a look at three ways the management can go to tackle Nitish’s absence.
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Veteran all-rounder Shardul Thakur is available as a like-for-like replacement. Thakur played in the series opener at Leeds but failed to impress and was subsequently dropped for Nitish Kumar Reddy in the following two Tests. Shardul managed scores of 1 and 4 while picking up just two wickets at Headingley.
Bringing back Shardul would allow India to maintain their core playing XI without having to tweak much and can continue with their four pacers and two spinners strategy.
India also has the luxury of bringing in their X-factor star in Kuldeep Yadav, who has been restricted to finding a spot in the playing XI owing to India’s preference to go with three all-rounders in a bid to provide batting depth.
However, Nitish’s injury can now open up Kuldeep’s chances to feature since he is a genuine wicket-taking option and can pose serious threat as the pitch gets old and the cracks open up.
India can also opt to use an extra batter or an extra pacer to fill Nitish’s void. India has Sai Sudharsan and Abhimanyu Easwaran waiting on the flanks who can be called on to shoulder batting responsibilities.
On the other hand, Gambhir and Co can look to go with an extra pacer in the lineup too. With Arshdeep likely to be ruled out and Akash Deep doubtful for Manchester Test, Kamboj is likely to earn his Test debut. Bumrah is also expected to play with the series on the line alongside Mohammed Siraj. Prasidh Krishna, who was sidelined for the Lord’s Test can be recalled into the playing XI or include Akash Deep if he’s fit.
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