Batsmen Prithvi Shaw and Suryakumar Yadav will fly to England to join the Virat Kohli-led Indian Test squad as replacements. The BCCI confirmed the development on Monday through an official statement, however, it didn’t give any information about when the duo will take off for the tour.
Both Prithvi and Suryakumar are currently in Sri Lanka for the limited-overs tour which ends on Thursday. It’s still to be known whether they will feature in the 2nd T20I against the hosts, which has been shifted to Wednesday after Krunal Pandya was tested positive for Covid-19.
Meanwhile, former India opener Aakash Chopra has opined that the Shikhar Dhawan-led Team India won’t have any major problem even if Prithvi and Suryakumar are unavailable for the second face-off. Speaking to ESPNCricinfo, the former cricketer said the likes of Devdutt Padikkal, Ruturaj Gaikwad and Nitish Rana have played enough cricket in IPL and can step forward to fill the void.
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“If they (Shaw and Suryakumar) are available then I don't think you need to make changes because you haven't won the series yet. If they aren't available, you have three options - Devdutt Padikkal, Ruturaj Gaikwad and Nitish Rana. You can play any two of these three players. They have enough experience after playing in the IPL,” Chopra said.
{{/usCountry}}“If they (Shaw and Suryakumar) are available then I don't think you need to make changes because you haven't won the series yet. If they aren't available, you have three options - Devdutt Padikkal, Ruturaj Gaikwad and Nitish Rana. You can play any two of these three players. They have enough experience after playing in the IPL,” Chopra said.
{{/usCountry}}The cricketer-turned-commentator also highlighted the struggle of the Sri Lankan team. He said that the batsmen need to take responsibility and anchor the innings at crucial moments.
“This is a struggling Sri Lankan team with a few players suspended so this is all that they have. They will need to play differently and players like Avishka Fernando will need to convert starts into big scores. Asalanka did try his best but he alone can't do all the work. These players will need to bat with more responsibility or else the result will be the same,” Aakash Chopra concluded.