England spinner Rehan Ahmed has returned home due to a family emergency and will not return for the remainder of the tour, ECB said in a statement. England Cricket also announced that they will not bring in his replacement for the final Test in Dharamsala. Rehan played the first three Tests, bagging 11 wickets at an average of 44, including picking six from 145 in the third Test in Vizag.
Thank you for reading this post, don't forget to subscribe!Captain Ben Stokes left him out of the playing XI for the ongoing fourth Test in Ranchi. However, Rehan’s omission has nothing to do with him heading home midway through the tour, as England had named its playing XI for the do-or-die Test one day before on Thursday, with an announcement surrounding Rehan coming in on the match day on Friday.
ALSO READ | IND vs ENG: Debutant Akash Deep rips apart England’s top order on Day 1 of Ranchi Test – Watch
Meanwhile, England had to wait for Rehan’s availability for the third Test in Rajkot after learning about visa-related issues regarding his arrival from the UAE. After resolving the issue, England named him in the XI for the third Test, which the touring side lost by 434 runs. The leg-spinner Rehan returned with three wickets in that match.
For the fourth game, England brought in off-spinner Shoaib Bashir in his place while replacing Mark Wood with Ollie Robinson. Moreover, in the absence of seasoned campaigner Jack Leach, rookie Tom Hartley leads the wickets column with 16 scalps from three matches.
Debutant Akash Deep floors England in Ranchi
After electing to bat first in the fourth Test in Ranchi, England got off to a flyer, with Zak Crawley being the architect. A debutant from India, Akash Deep, provided the breakthrough by removing Ben Duckett and Ollie Pope quickly. He then removed Crawley, bowled on 42 to pocket his third wicket.
Playing his 99th Test, Jonny Bairstow stabilised England’s innings with a swift 35-ball 38-run knock; however, Ashwin accounted for his wicket before Ravindra Jadeja removed Stokes on three to put England on the back foot before lunch.
Joe Root and Ben Foakes saved England’s sinking ship during the second session, helping their team cross the 150-run mark.
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