India Asked To Give 'Harshit Rana Debut Vs England' After Jasprit Bumrah Excluded In Updated ODI Squad
BCCI recently announced an updated ODI squad for the three-match series against England with no mention of injured Jasprit Bumrah.
The clock is ticking. In two weeks, the Indian team will be kickstarting their 2025 Champions Trophy campaign when they take the field against Bangladesh in Dubai. The squad has already been announced and a three-match ODI series, beginning today in Nagpur, will help them dust off the cobwebs, if any, as captain Rohit Sharma aims to add another ICC title to his name.
India though have a major fitness concern. Their pace spearhead Jasprit Bumrah is still recovering from a back injury he picked towards the final Test of their recent Australia tour and the team is still awaiting the result of a scan before taking a final call on whether to test his fitness in the ODI series against England.
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“Jasprit, we are waiting on some update about his scans and stuff, which was due to happen in some days. Once we get that scan, we will be able to give you more clarity on where he stands right now," Rohit told reporters in Nagpur on Wednesday.
India’s pace attack for the Champions Trophy comprises Bumrah, Mohammed Shami, Arshdeep Singh and allrounder Hardik Pandya.
Bumrah hasn’t been named in an updated squad for the England ODIs that BCCI recently announced which has raised further questions over the fast bowler’s availability for the marquee event starting February 19.
India though have rookie fast bowler Harshit Rana in their squad for the home series against England. The 23-year-old made his Test debut during the Australia tour and made his T20I debut last week after coming in as a concussion substitute for Shivam Dube.
Capable of consistently hitting 140kphs, Rana has shown potential and former India cricketer Aakash Chopra feels that given the circumstances, the right-arm pacer should be given a game during the England series to make sure he’s gotten a taste of ODI cricket should his services be needed in Champions Trophy.
“Bumrah’s name not mentioned in the updated squad. Not for the final ODI also. There’s no Siraj in the team already. Find a way to get Rana to debut vs Eng. I don’t know how though…with Arshdeep having played only a handful of ODI and Shami on a comeback trail. Play three seamers?" Chopra posted on X.
India will face England in the series opener at the Vidarbha Cricket Association Stadium in Nagpur today.
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