Shoaib Bashir could make Test debut with Jack Leach injured | Top Vip News

Ben Stokes has confirmed that Jack Leach will not be available for the second Test in Visakhapatnam after failing to recover from a knee injury sustained during the first Test.

Leach injured his knee on the first day of the Test in Hyderabad, before exacerbating the problem on the second morning. Although limited to short spells for the rest of the match, Leach managed to bowl 10 overs in the second innings and dismissed Shreyas Iyer as England sealed a famous 28-run victory.

The problem, a deep bruise, was expected to be resolved, but ongoing swelling prevented Leach from taking part in Wednesday’s training session at the ACA-VDCA cricket ground. Wearing compression stockings, he still had a hard time moving.

Stokes will wait until Thursday to name his XI, and will have to make a decision on whether England will opt for an extra seamer after a final look at the field. On Wednesday, however, he confirmed that Leach, who had just returned from a layoff due to a stress fracture in his back, would miss.

“He’s ruled out for the second Test,” Stokes said. “Unfortunately, the blow he took caused a bruise on his leg. It’s a big shame for us, a big shame for Jack, obviously after a long time out of the game with his back.”

“Suffering that injury, in the first game, is obviously frustrating. But it’s something we’re evaluating every day. The medical team has taken care of that and hopefully it’s not something too serious that will keep him out any longer.” in the series.” “.

Waiting in the wings is Leach’s Somerset teammate Shoaib Bashir. The uncapped player arrived in India during the first Test after a delay in his entry visa. Now back in the group and training, Stokes urged Bashir to take the opportunity, in what would be only his seventh first-class match.

“If he played on this tour, the best thing he would have on his side would be: What could he lose?” Stokes said. “That’s how I’ll think about it, if he gets the chance to play: just to make sure I can give him the best possible experience. Because you only play your first Test match once. If he plays, then I’ll try to make it as enjoyable and fun as possible for him.” .

“Me, Baz (Brendon McCullum) and Popey (vice-captain Ollie Pope) will probably think about it more. We looked at the wicket; I gave it a touch and tried to make it look like I knew. “What I was doing. Bash is on the team, we didn’t bring him here to have an experience. “If we feel like we want to turn to him, we will.”

After returning to London from the UAE to sort out his visa, Bashir landed in Hyderabad at 8.25am last Sunday, the fourth day of the first Test, before showering and heading straight to the ground. Stokes was encouraged by his eagerness to return to the team.

“I mentioned to Wayne (Bentley, the England team coach) that Bash doesn’t have to stay here if he doesn’t want to. But he said, ‘no, no, I’ll stay for this.'” Bashir was rewarded with a thrilling finish as his fellow rookie Tom Hartley scored 7 for 62 to defeat India for 202 in pursuit of a target of 231.

“It was great for him to see that on his first day back in camp and see what Test cricket can bring and what it’s like,” Stokes said. “I would have seen it on television before, but being in the locker room and seeing the emotion I also think was great for him. He knows what it is and I hope that makes him want to do it even more.”

Stokes also revealed that his first contact with Bashir came through social media. casting an impressive spell on Alastair Cook on his first-class debut for Somerset against Essex. Although Bashir would only take one wicket in 49 overs in the match, Stokes was already hooked and sent it to McCullum and manager Rob Key.

“To be completely honest, Abu Dhabi was the first time I saw the Bash live and in person,” Stokes said. “The first time I saw him was on Twitter. I think the County Championship (account) put together a little clip of him bowling against Sir Alastair.

“I’m in a WhatsApp group with Keysy and Baz. I actually forwarded the clip and said ‘look at this, this could be something we could work with on our India tour’ and it progressed from there. It got picked up on the Lions tour and obviously the coaches on that tour told us everything.”

If Bashir were to make the XI, it would be an even bolder decision than Hartley’s inclusion for the series opener, considering the Lancashire player had 14 more first-class caps under his belt before receiving his first cap. Bashir’s overall record is a modest 10 wickets with 67 in six appearances.

But Stokes, having taken his third debutant spinner to a five-wicket haul following the hauls of Will Jacks and Rehan Ahmed in Pakistan last winter, believes Bashir has the tools to achieve similar success in these conditions.

“I just saw something,” he said. “The height from which he bowled it was very obvious that he put a lot of action, a lot of spins on the ball. It was something I looked at and thought, this could be quite good for India. I have played a lot of games here. As a batsman, you know what it is like. difficult to deal with, especially from an effects point of view.

“When it came time for selection, to be honest, we didn’t think much about it, because everyone was very, very impressed with what Bash showed. And everything we wanted in our spin group was answered by Bashir.”