In a big revamp after India's humiliating loss to South Africa in the first Test, Avesh Khan has been announced as Mohammed Shami's replacement for the second match which is scheduled to start from January 3.
“The Men’s Selection Committee has named Mr Avesh Khan as a replacement for Mr Mohd. Shami for the second Test against South Africa to be played from 3rd-7th January 2024 in Cape Town,” BCCI stated in a press release on December 29.
India’s squad for 2nd Test: India’s squad for Tests: Rohit Sharma (C), Shubman Gill, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul (wk), Ravichandran Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Shardul Thakur, Mohd. Siraj, Mukesh Kumar, Jasprit Bumrah (VC), Prasidh Krishna, KS Bharat (wk), Abhimanyu Easwaran, Avesh Khan
India suffered a crushing defeat at the hands of South Africa in the two-match Test series opener, with Rohit Sharma’s brigade being outperformed in both batting and bowling. KL Rahul's impressive century in the first innings brought India's total to 245, but Dean Elgar's remarkable innings of 185 led South Africa to a strong total of 408 runs by the end of their first innings.
India's bowling was lackluster, as besides Jasprit Bumrah, who took four-fer in the first innings, none of the Indian bowlers could pose any threat to South African batters.
Meanwhile, Avesh Khan, who represents Madhya Pradesh in First-Class cricket, boasts an impressive record of 149 wickets in 38 first-class games. He was particularly notable during the 2018-19 season, securing 35 wickets in just seven matches.
Apart from Shami, India also missed Ravindra Jadeja, who suffered a back spasm before the first Test. In his absence, Shardul Thakur was included in the lineup, but his performance was underwhelming, conceding 101 runs without making a significant impact with either ball or bat.
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