Virat Kohli will miss the three remaining Tests due to personal reasons. Kohli did not play in the first two Tests and informed the Indian board that he will not return for the remainder of the series, denying the match the presence of perhaps the world's most charismatic and volatile cricketer when it resumes on 1 -1. next week in Rajkot.
There has been no further public explanation for Kohli's absence other than the statement made before the start of the series that he would be unavailable due to personal reasons. It will be the first time he has missed an entire home series since the start of his Test career.
India won the second match of the series thanks to Ollie Pope's 196 and Tom Hartley's seven-for in the second inning. India bounced back with victory in the second match, set up by Yashasvi Jaiswal's double century and completed by Bumrah's nine wickets in the match.
The third Test starts next Thursday. England are currently on break with their families in the UAE and will fly to India on Monday to resume training two days before the start of the third Test. However, one player who will not be returning to India is Jack Leach, who has been ruled out of the remainder of the series due to a knee injury.
What is the full match list and schedule?
1st test: January 25-29, Hyderabad - England won by 28 runs
2nd test: February 2-6, Visakhapatnam - India won by 106 runs
3rd test: February 15-19, Rajkot (starts at 4:00 am)
4th test: February 23-27, Ranchi (starts at 4 am)
5th test: March 7-11, Dharamsala (starts at 4am)
Which TV channel is showing India vs England?
In Britain, TNT Sports (formerly BT Sport) is showing the series after an agreement was reached just nine days before the first ball was bowled. The matches can also be viewed on Discovery+. Commentary is from the world feed, with Kevin Pietersen and Eoin Morgan.
Although there was no studio presence at all for the first Test, for the remainder of the series TNT Sports flew Alastair Cook and Steven Finn to Sweden to get up early and provide an on-screen presence. The studio host is Kate Mason.
The story continues
The live radio coverage is on Talksport 2, not BBC Test Match Special. Although the BBC bid for the rights, they were defeated by the commercial broadcaster. Talksport will broadcast the next leg of England's tour of India mainly from London with a significantly smaller team on location in Rajkot and Ranchi.
Who is in the England squad?
The English squad of sixteen consists of a mix of youth and experience. Veterans like Joe Root and James Anderson are joined by rookie spinners in Shoaib Bashir and Tom Hartley, the latter of whom took nine wickets on his debut in the opening match. Harry Brook was allowed to return to Britain for personal reasons before the first Test even started. There is no suggestion he will join the tour at any point and has been replaced in the squad by Dan Lawrence. England will have to make do without Jack Leach for the final three Tests, with the spinner failing to recover from the knee injury he suffered on the opening day of the series.
England's 16-man squad for India
Ben Stokes (captain), Rehan Ahmed, James Anderson, Gus Atkinson, Jonny Bairstow (wicketkeeper), Shoaib Bashir, Harry BrookZak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Ben Foakes, Tom Hartley, Jack LeachOllie Pope, Ollie Robinson, Joe Root, Mark Wood
Added: Then Laurens
Who is in the Indian squad?
Besides Kohli, India have also left out middle-order batsman Shreyas Iyer for the last three Tests but named Ravindra Jadeja and KL Rahul in the squad. Jadeja (hamstring) and Rahul (thigh) missed India's win in Vizag and will undergo fitness tests in Rajkot before a decision is made on their participation in that match.
Iyer scored just 35, 13, 27 and 29 in the first two Tests but excelled in the field, taking a crucial catch off Zak Crawley in the first innings in Vizag and dismissing Ben Stokes on the final day. India expect Rahul to return in the middle order and have kept faith in Rajit Patidar, who made an assured debut in the second Test.
It remains to be seen whether Jasprit Bumrah will star in Rajkot. India are likely to rest him for at least one of the next two Tests before a short break before the final match of the series in Dharamshala. Seamer Akash Deep, who was the leading wicket-taker for India A in the recent series against the Lions, has been called up to the Test squad for the first time.
Indian squad for remaining Tests:
Rohit Sharma (captain), Jasprit Bumrah, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Shubman Gill, KL Rahul (wk), Rajat Patidar, Sarfaraz Khan, Dhruv Jurel (wk), KS Bharat (wk), Ravichandran Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Axar Patel, Washington Sundar , Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammed Siraj, Mukesh Kumar, Akash Deep.
What are the locations and stadiums for the tests?
Rajiv Gandhi International Cricket Stadium/Uppal Stadium
Dr. YS Rajashekar Reddy ACA-VDCA cricket stadium
Saurashtra Cricket Association Stadium/Khandheri Cricket Stadium
Jharkhand State Cricket Association Stadium
Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association Stadium
What are the latest test results between the two teams?
India in England (2021)
August: Match drawn
August: India won by 151 runs
August: England won by one innings and 76 runs
September: India won by 157 runs
July 2022 (match postponed due to Covid): England won by seven wickets
England in India (2021)
February: England won by 227 runs
February: India won by 317 runs
February: India won by 10 wicket
March: India won by an innings and 25 runs
