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Ben Stokes in the first test against England© BCCI/Sportzpics
It looks like young English player Shoaib Bashir will make his debut in the second Test of the series against England in Visakhapatnam. Bashir failed to make his debut in the series opener, but a visa issue forced him to return home from the United Arab Emirates rather than join his teammates in India. With Jack Leach ruled out for the second Test, England captain Ben Stokes hinted that he would turn to Bashir in the second Test. But the Stokes refused to confirm that Bashir will definitely be part of the XI.
“He’s ruled out for the second Test,” Stokes said, speaking of Leach’s injury. “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.”
When asked about rookie player Bshir, Stokes gave a rather philosophical answer, saying that if the player must play in the match, he will do so.
“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.” “Stokes said.
Stokes, vice-captain Ollie Pope and head coach Brendon McCullum have taken a look at the Vizag pitch, based on which a decision will be taken on the number of spinners the team wants to deploy.
But the England captain might be inclined to include Bashir in the squad, especially as reports suggest that the Vizag pitch will offer good help to the spinners.
“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 we want to turn to him, we will,” Stokes concluded.
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