Bengal pacer Akash Deep debuts for India as the Rohit Sharma-led hosts lock horns with England on Day 1 of the fourth and penultimate Test in Ranchi on Friday (Feb 23). The speedster replaces Jasprit Bumrah — who is the leading wicket-taker of the series with 17 scalps — in the playing XI after the senior pro was rested for the Ranchi encounter. England have opted to bat first, in Jharkhand’s capital city, as India lead the series 2-1.
Thank you for reading this post, don't forget to subscribe!Akash impressed the Rohit-led Indian team management with his bowling during India A versus England Lions matches. During the series, he accounted for 10 wickets in two red-ball games held in Ahmedabad. While India also had the option to play Mukesh Kumar, who was part of the Visakhapatnam Test, they went ahead with the debutant as Mukesh proved expensive in Vizag.
Notably, 27-year-old Akash has partnered with Mukesh for Bengal in red-ball cricket. He has scalped 104 wickets from 30 first-class games, at an average of 23.58.
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After losing the toss in Ranchi, the Indian captain told the broadcasters on Friday morning, “We would have batted first as well. Looks a bit dry and has some cracks, but that’s the nature of the pitch here. The last two games were good for us and we’ll have to play in the same way. Proud of a lot of young guys in the squad, they’ve taken the responsibility and have taken the challenge head-on. They are confident in their skills, moving forward it’s a good thing. One change with Akash Deep making his debut.”
India have gone ahead with three spinners and two pacers whereas England, who named their XI on Thursday (Feb 22), have recalled Shoaib Bashir — with Rehan Ahmed out of the tour — whereas pacer Ollie Robinson has replaced Mark Wood in their line-up.
Playing XIs:
India: Yashasvi Jaiswal, Rohit Sharma(c), Shubman Gill, Rajat Patidar, Sarfaraz Khan, Ravindra Jadeja, Dhruv Jurel(w), Ravichandran Ashwin, Kuldeep Yadav, Akash Deep, Mohammed Siraj
England: Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Ollie Pope, Joe Root, Jonny Bairstow, Ben Stokes(c), Ben Foakes(w), Tom Hartley, Ollie Robinson, Shoaib Bashir, James Anderson
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