India selectors consider Prince Yadav as backup for Jasprit Bumrah ahead of Afghanistan T20Is and Asian Games

Jasprit Bumrah and Prince Yadav (Agency Image)

New Delhi: As the Indian team awaits Jasprit Bumrah’s fitness reports ahead of the T20I series against Afghanistan next week and the subsequent Asian Games, the national selectors have identified Prince Yadav as a probable backup. TOI understands that Bumrah, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Washington Sundar and Harshit Rana are due to undergo match simulation tests over the course of this week before the Indian team assembles in Delhi on Sept 10. “The BCCI medical team at the Centre of Excellence (CoE) had shared a report with selectors last week, where it was mentioned that these four players were clinically fit but had to be assessed in practice matches. The CoE has lined up the matches from Sept 4-9. The CoE is confident that the players should be ready for the Afghanistan series,” a BCCI source said. Prince made his international debut in the ODI series against Afghanistan at home in June. He too suffered a hamstring injury in the second T20I in Zimbabwe on July 25. It is learnt that he has been declared fit by the CoE and is available for selection. Prince has been doing well in T20Is since this year’s IPL and the selectors see him as a serious prospect going forward.

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Selectors want Bumrah to play one FC match before NZ Tests

The selectors and the team management want Bumrah to get some game time in a first-class match before the Test series in New Zealand. Bumrah hasn’t played a red-ball match since the second Test against South Africa in Guwahati last November. He has only played T20 cricket before injuring his knee after two ODIs in England in July. “As it is, he has to skip Test matches because of his fitness. One has to be clear that his knee can take the load of a first-class game before he takes the field in a Test in New Zealand. It needs to be seen if he plays a Ranji Trophy game or a first-class game for India ‘A’ in New Zealand. He is likely to be rested for the T20I series against West Indies at home in October. But the ‘A’ games in New Zealand overlap with the ODI series there,” a source said.

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