Ind vs Eng: Axar Patel available for second Test but who will play him or Kuldeep?
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Chennai, Feb 12: India all-rounder Axar Patel has recovered completely and is now available for selection for the second Test in Chennai against England to be played from Saturday. He had complained of pain in his left knee and was ruled out of the first Test. The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) then had included spinners Shahbaz Nadeem and Rahul Chahar to the Indian Test squad.
Since Axar is available for selection for the second Test the All-India Senior Selection Committee has now withdrawn Nadeem and Chahar from the main squad and added the duo back to the group of standby players.
"Axar Patel has recovered completely and is now available for selection for the 2nd Paytm Test in Chennai against England to be played from Saturday, 13th February," the BCCI said in an official statement.
India Test squad: Virat Kohli (Captain), Rohit Sharma, Mayank Agarwal, Shubman Gill, Cheteshwar Pujara, Ajinkya Rahane (Vice-Captain), KL Rahul, Hardik Pandya, Rishabh Pant (wicket-keeper), Wriddhiman Saha (wicket-keeper), R Ashwin, Kuldeep Yadav, Axar Patel, Washington Sundar, Ishant Sharma, Jasprit Bumrah, Md. Siraj, Shardul Thakur
Standby players: K S Bharat, Abhimanyu Easwaran, Shahbaz Nadeem, Rahul Chahar, Priyank Panchal
Net Bowlers: Ankit Rajpoot, Avesh Khan, Sandeep Warrier, Krishnappa Gowtham, Saurabh Kumar
Meanwhile, England pacer Jofra Archer will miss the second Test against India. "The issue is not related to any previous injury and it is hoped the treatment will allow the condition to settle down quickly, allowing the player to return to action in time for the third Test in Ahmedabad," said the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) in an official statement on Thursday.
England defeated India by 227 runs in the first Test at the MA Chidambaram Stadium on Tuesday. England's winning start against India in their ICC World Test Championship series has kept alive the visiting side's hopes to make it to the finals.
India, who have slipped to the fourth position with 68.3 percentage points, cannot afford another loss in the four-match series and will be looking to win at least two of the remaining three matches to secure a 2-1 or 3-1 result and a place in the final.
The second Test will be played in Chennai at the MA Chidambaram Stadium before the cricketers move to Ahmedabad for the third and fourth Test.