Test captain Shubman Gill unlikely to play for India A in second unofficial Test against England Lions
New Delhi [India], June 3 (ANI): India's newly crowned Test captain, Shubman Gill, won't feature in the second unofficial Test between India A and England Lions, which is scheduled to be held at Northampton from June 6, according to ESPNcricinfo.
Last month, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) unveiled a Test squad for the five high-stakes Tests in England, beginning from June 20 at Headingley. The board announced that Gill, who succeeded Rohit Sharma as the Test captain, and Sai Sudharsan would join India A for the second unofficial Test.
However, according to ESPNcricinfo, Gill and Sudharsan will travel with the main squad, landing in England on June 6. But seasoned wicketkeeper batter KL Rahul is expected to feature against the England Lions after linking up with the India A squad on Tuesday.
Along with Rahul, Akash Deep will be available for selection. Akash sustained a back injury after the Border-Gavaskar Trophy in Australia. He regained fitness in April and featured for the Lucknow Super Giants, scalping three wickets from six fixtures.
According to ESPNcricinfo, Akash was present with the India A squad in the first unofficial Test in Canterbury and bowled in short stints during the breaks across the four days.
England Lions, who fielded an inexperienced XI with six Test caps in the first unofficial contest, are expected to receive a massive boost from Chris Woakes's addition for the second clash.
The first unofficial Test between India A and England Lions ended in a draw on Monday. Yashasvi Jaiswal (64 off 60 balls), Abhimanyu Easwaran (68 off 87 balls), Dhruv Jurel (53 not out), and Nitish Kumar Reddy (52 not out off 47 balls) impressed in the second innings.
Meanwhile, in the first turn, Karun Nair's redemption arc in England began with a rollicking double century. On Day 2, with the sun shining over Canterbury, Karun stepped on the crease with an ambition of continuing to thrive with his formula of success and making England Lions toil hard for wickets.
The 32-year-old had to wait till the final over of the 101st over to get his hands on the elusive landmark. Eddie Jack went wayward in line and length, allowing Nair to exploit the gap.
He sent the ball racing towards the boundary rope for a four and brought up a sizzling double ton. Nair soaked in the sound of applause in the stadium and kissed his helmet to allow the landmark moment to sink in. Nair holed it to Rew off Zaman Akhter and returned with 204(281). (ANI)
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