Avesh Khan, Washington Sundar play against India in three-day match, turn up for County Select XI

Avesh and Sundar, however, will continue to be part of the Indian bubble, which means during breaks they will be inside the Indian dressing room and not the County side.

India decided to field Avesh Khan and Washington Sundar in the County Select XI side after ECB requested them for a couple of players due to Covid concerns with two County XI players. Avesh, the right-arm seamer and Sundar, the off-spinning all-rounder, are turning up for the County XI side in the three-day warm-up match against the Indians at Chester-le-Street in Durham on Tuesday.

Avesh Khan playing against India in the three-day match(Durham Cricket/screengrab)

The three-day warm-up match between India and County Select XI has been given a first-class status which means no changes are possible after naming the XI at the toss. But the practice match being the only chance to have a look at the bench strength before the five-match Test series against England starts on August 4, the Indian think tank had no hesitation in leding Avesh and Sundar for the County XI side.

Avesh and Sundar, however, will continue to be part of the Indian bubble, which means during breaks they will be inside the Indian dressing room and not the County side.

India vs County Select XI live score

Interestingly, Avesh and Sundar were seen wearing Indian jerseys while the rest of the County XI players were in their England whites.

Rohit Sharma is captaining the Indian side as captain Virat Kohli and vice-captain Ajinkya Rahane both decided to sit out.

Regular keeper Rishabh Pant and senior reserve glovesman Wriddhiman Saha are currently isolating in London after the COVID scare but are expected to join the team before the intra-squad game scheduled at the Riverside ground during the last week of this month. It is tentatively scheduled between July 26-28.

While Kohli, Rahane, Shami are also coming from a three-week break, playing a first-class match means that all the seniors will have to remain on field for a stipulated period of time.

The match also provides an opportunity for Hanuma Vihari to score a few runs and keep Rahane under pressure since he hasn't been scoring runs very consistently.

The five-Test series will be an acid test for both Cheteshwar Pujara and Rahane.