England’s Jack Leach has been ruled out of the second Test against India through injury, with his Somerset teammate Shoaib Bashir now nearer an international debut as a result.
Left-arm spinner Leach, 32, played a limited role in England’s stunning 28-run win in the series opener, where Ben Stokes’s men overcame a first-innings deficit of 190 runs, following a problem with his left knee.
“He’s ruled out of the second Test. Unfortunately the knock he took resulted in a haematoma,” Stokes told travelling British media on Wednesday.
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“It’s a big shame for us and a big shame for him. It’s something we’re assessing every day but the medical team have taken over on that so hopefully it’s not something too serious that keeps him out for longer.”
Bashir was forced to fly back to London to resolve a visa issue last week but returned in time to witness the last day of England’s sensational victory in the first of a five-Test series.
The 20-year-old off-spinner has taken a mere 10 first-class wickets at an average of 67.
But rookie left-arm spinner Tom Hartley bagged a seven-wicket haul in India’s failed run chase on Test debut last week and England may again ignore any lack of experience.
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“To be perfectly honest, our training camp in Abu Dhabi was the first real live look I got at Bash,” Stokes said.
“The first time I saw him was on Twitter. I think the County Championship put a little clip together of him bowling against Sir Alastair (Cook).
“I just saw something. With the height he bowled from, it was very obvious that he put a lot of action, a lot of revolutions, on the ball.”
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