Mayank Agarwal ruled out of first Test against England
In what comes as a blow for the Indian cricket team, opening batter Mayank Agarwal has been ruled out of the first Test match against England. Mayank, who was expected to open for Team India alongside Rohit Sharma, was hit on the helmet during a training session. He showed signs of concussion after being assessed by the BCCI medical team. Here's more.
Earlier, all-rounder Washington Sundar, opening-batsman Shubman Gill, and fast bowler Avesh Khan were ruled out of the England Test series. The BCCI named Prithvi Shaw and Suryakumar Yadav as replacements. However, these two players who were recently involved in the white-ball series against Sri Lanka will have to quarantine for 10 days. They will only be available from the third Test.
With Mayank ruled out of the first Test, India could prefer KL Rahul to open alongside Rohit. Rahul recently scored a century in the warm-up match against County Select XI. However, he had batted at number five. Given Rahul's experience, he is the ideal candidate to open. However, Rahul last played a Test for India in 2019.
According to a BCCI release, Mayank is stable and will remain under close medical observation. As per reports, Mayank was seen in some discomfort after removing the helmet. He sat on the ground with physio Nitin Patel attending him. Mayank was then seen pressing the back of his head while leaving the nets. He was escorted by Patel.
Abhimanyu Easwaran is the other option. He could be handed his Test debut. The management may also look at Hanuma Vihari in the opening slot. A middle-order batsman, Vihari did open for India earlier in their Test tour of Australia.
