Left-arm pacer Arshdeep Singh can make his debut in red-ball cricket in the fifth Test against England which is set to commence from July 31 at The Oval. This comes after he had been ruled out of the Manchester Test after sustaining an injury to his hand which saw him get stitches. Arshdeep was seen bowling in the optional training session which took place on Tuesday.
Now, a report in The Times of India has stated that Arshdeep was in plans of the team management for the fourth Test as well, but the injury saw him get ruled out. The report further claimed that that the 26-year-old is 'very likely' to feature in the fifth Test.
"It is understood that the management had him in the plans for the last two Tests, but his injury made him unavailable in Manchester. With Arshdeep very likely to get into the XI, India's bowling combination is set to be rejigged once again," the report stated.
Akash Deep can also be in the mix
Another point that the report made was that Akash Deep, who also hadn't featured in the fourth Test due to a groin injury, is also liklely to be back in the mix for the upcoming match and a big call can be taken on Jasprit Bumrah.
"Mohammed Siraj and Akash Deep are likely to be the other two seamers, and a late call could be taken, if needed, on Jasprit Bumrah," the report added.
Arshdeep's childhood coach, Jaswant Rai feels that the pacer is ready to make his Test debut needs and added that he can also provide some much-needed balance to the side's bowling attack.
"Playing red-ball cricket for the country is the ultimate dream of any cricketer. The same is with Arshdeep. Wo pak chuka hai (He is ripe now). He should get a chance to play with the red ball. He can bring the balance that India has been looking for so long. He has patiently done the hard yards, and I might sound biased, but he deserves the Test cap. If not in England, then where?" Jaswant told The Times of India.
Meanwhile, India head into the fifth and final Test, trailing behind England in the series by 2-1. The draw in Manchester saw the Men in Blue lose out all their chances of triumphing the series, but they can still manage to level it up with a victory at The Oval. However, The Three Lions will be the favourites to lift the Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy as even a draw in the upcoming game will see them win the series.