Mayank Agarwal, who was tipped to open for India against England, has been ruled out of the first Test after being hit on the helmet during a net session in Nottingham on Monday.
“Agarwal was hit on the helmet while batting during India’s nets session at Trent Bridge on Monday,” the BCCI said in a statement.
“The BCCI Medical Team assessed him, and a concussion test was conducted. He has shown signs of concussion and is ruled out of the opening Test. The 30-year-old is stable and will remain under close medical observation.”
India’s squad for the five-match series in England – the first in the 2021-23 cycle for the ICC World Test Championship – has been marred by injuries, with Shubman Gill, Avesh Khan and Washington Sundar returning home for rehabilitation.
Now, KL Rahul and Abhimanyu Easwaran are the two designated opening options available with India to partner Rohit Sharma. The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has sent Prithvi Shaw, along with Suryakumar Yadav, to England but he will be available only for the remaining matches after serving a mandatory 10-day quarantine period.
India’s squad for 1st Test: Rohit Sharma, Cheteshwar Pujara, Virat Kohli (c), Ajinkya Rahane, Hanuma Vihari, Rishabh Pant, Ravichandran Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Axar Patel, Jasprit Bumrah, Ishant Sharma, Mohammed Shami, Mohammed Siraj, Shardul Thakur, Umesh Yadav, KL Rahul, Wriddhiman Saha, Abhimanyu Easwaran.
