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India's assistant coach Ryan ten Doeschate hinted at spinner Kuldeep Yadav's inclusion in India's playing XI for the second Test against England, and said the door remains open for senior pacer Jasprit Bumrah to feature in the Edgbaston encounter. India are expected to make a few changes in their playing XI for the second Test after their five-wicket defeat in the series opener in Leeds.
The second Test of the five-match series between India and England is set to get underway at Edgbaston in Birmingham on Wednesday, July 02. There are question marks over Bumrah's availability for the Test match despite the pacer being fully fit. It was pre-decided that Bumrah would play only three of the five Tests against England due to workload management.
He is thus likely to miss the second Test at Edgbaston after bowling over 43 overs during England's two innings combined in the first Test in Leeds. When asked about the chances of Biumrah featuring in India's playing XI for the 2nd Test, Doeschate said the pacer is fit, but the decision on his inclusion has not been taken yet.
“He’s available for the game obviously. We know from the start he’s only going to play three out of the five. He’s had eight days to recover from the last test. But given conditions and workload and how we think we can best manage for the next four games, we haven’t made a call on that," Doeschate said in the pre-match press conference in Birmingham on Monday.
“If we feel like there’s value in playing him in this Test, we’ll make that call at the very last minute," he added.
There are also strong chances of India including Kuldeep in the playing XI for the second Test against England. The visitors went with Ravindra Jadeja as the lone spinner in the first Test in Headingley. However, the left-arm all-rounder failed to impress with the ball, managing a solitary wicket in two innings combined.
There have been calls for Kuldeep's inclusion in the XI, considering his wicket-taking ability. Speaking about the chances of the left-arm spinner's return, Doeschate said the team management is strongly considering playing two spinners in the second Test. However, he insisted that a decision is yet to be made on whether India should go with a specialist spinner in Kuldeep or an all-rounder in Washington Sundar.
"There is a very strong chance of playing two spinners. It's just which two we play. All three spinners are bowling very nicely. Washi's batting very nicely. So it's just which combination do we go with? All-rounder spinner or the out-and-out spinner? And obviously, you have to play the bowling all-rounder again. So there are so many different variables," said Doeschate.
Kuldeep has a great record against England across formats. The left-arm spinner has 21 wickets to his name in six Tests against England at an average of 22.28. He played a pivotal role in India's series victory against England at home earlier this year, with 19 wickets in 4 matches.
However, there remain concerns about Kuldeep's ability to produce match-winning spells in English conditions. Nonetheless, it remains to be seen if the Indian team management will pick him as the specialist spinner in the XI or go with Washington Sundar as a second spin all-rounder alongside Jadeja.
