Selectors Deny Management's Request To Fly Prithvi Shaw, Devdutt Padikkal As Backup Openers For England Series After Shubman Gill Ruled Out Of The Tour

The selectors have reportedly declined the Indian management’s request to send in Prithvi Shaw and Devdutt Padikkal as replacements for the injured Shubman Gill, who has been ruled out of the entire England series after suffering a stress-related injury in his left leg.

According to a report in India Today, the selectors have told the management to add Abhimanyu Easwaran to the squad. Easwaran is among the standby or reserve players in addition to the first squad. However, the management doesn’t believe that Easwaran is “technically ready for top quality Test cricket”.

The report revealed that the management wrote an email to the selectors on June 28 asking for flying in Prithvi Shaw and Devdutt Padikkal, both of whom are currently in Sri Lanka for limited-overs matches, as back-up openers to Mayank Agarwal, who is likely to open alongside Rohit Sharma after Shubman Gill being ruled out.

Also, the management is persistent to consider KL Rahul as a middle-order option only and not as an opener. Even if Shaw and Padikkal were to fly to England, they would have to serve a quarantine period as Sri Lanka, similar to India, is on the Red List territories of the UK government.

However, the Chetan Sharma-led selection panel is adamant to keep Shaw and Padikkal in Sri Lanka.

“Shubman Gill has been ruled out of the entire Test series in the UK with shin splints that will take minimum of three months to heal. The team’s administrative manager, at the end of last month, had sent an emailed requisition to former pacer Sharma asking for two more openers to be sent to the UK,” PTI had quoted a senior BCCI source in the know of developments.

Shubman Gill asked to return back home by the board

The BCCI has reportedly asked Shubman Gill to return back home as soon as possible, according to Cricbuzz. The young opener has suffered an injury to his shins and will be needed about more than 2 months to recover completely.

The England Test series starts on August 4 at Trent Bridge; the right-hander would have certainly missed at least the first three matches till the end of August. The board doesn’t want to take any risks regarding the injury and hence have told the opener to take more time to recover, calling him back to India for rehab.

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