India’s Test specialist, Murali Vijay and Ajinkya Rahane, will be looking to acclimatize to the English conditions in India A’s last first-class fixture against England Lions at the County Ground in Worcester, starting on Monday (July 16).
Vijay and Rahane are not part of the national limited-overs squad and last played for India in the one-off Test against Afghanistan last month. Given that both the batsmen are certainties in Indian Test squad, they certainly need more match practice before the red-ball contest against England, scheduled to start from August 1 at Edgbaston, Birmingham.
Vijay and Rahane were India’s most successful batsman during the previous England tour. With 402 runs to his name, Vijay was India’s highest run-getter in the 2014 Pataudi Trophy while Rahane had scored a majestic century at Lord’s on a green mamba, a match that India went on to win.
As per the reports in PTI, the Indian team management is currently waiting for an update on fitness status of first wicketkeeper Wriddhiman Saha (thumb fracture) and pacer Jasprit Bumrah (fractured finger).
In case Wriddhiman fails to recover in time, Dinesh Karthik is the most likely to candidate to take up the wicketkeeping role. On the other hand, Bumrah’s injury is also a concerned for the team as he is expected to play a vital role in the pace department.
Apparently, speedster Mohammad Shami has passed the obligatory Yo-Yo fitness test last week and is waiting to board the flight to England once the Test team is announced.
India’s Tour of England Schedule:
Jul 03, 1st T20I – Old Trafford, Manchester
Jul 06, 2nd T20I – Sophia Gardens, Cardiff
Jul 08, 3rd T20I – County Ground, Bristol
Jul 12, 1st ODI – Trent Bridge, Nottingham
Jul 14, 2nd ODI – Lord's, London
Jul 17, 3rd ODI – Headingley, Leeds
Aug 01 - Aug 05, 1st Test – Edgbaston, Birmingham
Aug 09 - Aug 13, 2nd Test – Lord's, London
Aug 18 - Aug 22, 3rd Test – Trent Bridge, Nottingham
Aug 30 - Sep 03, 4th Test – The Rose Bowl, Southampton
Sep 07 - Sep 11, 5th Test – Kennington Oval, London