As many as three changes are made for this Test.
The English team, leading the five-match Test series by 1-0, won the toss and decided to bowl first on a pitch expected to assist early seam movement at Edgbaston. India made a few changes to their playing XI going into the second Test of the five-match series. The likes of Sai Sudharsan and Kuldeep Yadav have not been added, while Jasprit Bumrah is also missing owing to workload management. The captain, Shubman Gill, and coach Gautam Gambhir are being called out by cricket pundits and fans.
Sudharsan made his Test debut during the first Test against England in Leeds, where he failed to make an impact with the bat. He got out on a duck and then made 30 in the second innings. The 23-year-old had a poor debut, and since this is a must-win affair, the management opted for a reshuffle.
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The Bengal-based pacer Akash Deep has been included in India’s playing XI to replace the star pacer, Bumrah. Alongside Sudharsan, Shardul Thakur is also dropped. The likes of Nitish Kumar Reddy and Washington Sundar have also been added to the XI to increase batting depth and add bowling options.
Among the changes, what has grabbed the spotlight the most is the exclusion of young Sai Sudharsan and Kuldeep Yadav. Many believe that the young left-hander should have been included in the playing XI. Further, to strengthen the bowling lineup, especially in Bumrah’s absence, Kuldeep Yadav should’ve been a no-brainer choice. The audience on X (formerly Twitter) has castigated the Indian team management, especially head coach Gautam Gambhir, after he made drastic changes to the playing XI.
Earlier, India lost the first Test as the hosts managed to chase down 371 on the last day in Leeds. The likes of Gill, KL Rahul, Rishabh Pant, and Yashasvi Jaiswal scored tons. But the bowling lineup struggled apart from Bumrah, who scalped five wickets in the first innings. Openers Zak Crawley (65) and Ben Duckett (149) starred with their willows in the second innings, helping England chase down the huge total. Joe Root also chipped in with a brilliant fifty alongside Jamie Smith, who made an unbeaten 44 runs.
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England (Playing XI): Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Ollie Pope, Joe Root, Harry Brook, Ben Stokes (c), Jamie Smith (w), Chris Woakes, Brydon Carse, Josh Tongue, Shoaib Bashir.
India (Playing XI): Yashasvi Jaiswal, KL Rahul, Karun Nair, Shubman Gill (c), Rishabh Pant (w), Nitish Kumar Reddy, Ravindra Jadeja, Washington Sundar, Akash Deep, Mohammed Siraj, Prasidh Krishna.
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