IND vs ENG: England, on Sunday, suffered a major setback as lead spinner Jack Leach has been ruled out of the remainder of the Test series against India. Leach incurred a left knee injury, confirmed the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB), who have, however, not named a replacement yet.Leach sustained the injury during the opening game of the five-match Test series in Hyderabad, where England had claimed a 28-run win, before being ruled out of the second Test in Visakhapatnam. The left-arm spinner will now travel back home from Abu Dhabi, where the England team is currently stationed, owing to a short mid-tour break between the second and the third Test match of the series.Were all with you, Leachy ❤️Nobody braver than you 💪Jack Leach has been ruled out of the remainder of our Test series with India.#INDvENG | #EnglandCricket— England Cricket (@englandcricket) February 11, 2024The media release stated, He will fly home from Abu Dhabi in the next 24 hours, where the England team have been staying ahead of the third Test in Rajkot, which starts on Thursday.“Leach will work closely with the England and Somerset medical teams in respect of his rehabilitation,” the statement from ECB added.Who will be Leachs replacementECB has yet to name a replacement for Leach, although they have a spin department comprising Rehan Ahmed, Tom Hartley, and Shoaib Bashir. Notably, England also has a part-time spinner in Joe Root. Leachs injury has added woes to Englands bowling lineup as other spinners have less experience. The series currently stands poised at 1-1 after India beat England by 106 runs in the second Test. Yashasvi Jaiswal scored a double century en route to a thundering knock of 209. Meanwhile, Shubman Gill silenced his critics with his maiden Test century batting at No. 3. In the same game, ace pacer Jasprit Bumrah picked up a record nine-wicket haul as India leveled the series in Visakhapatnam.India announces squad for rest of three TestsIndia on Saturday announced their squad for the final three matches. Shreyas Iyer was not named in the 17-man squad, while Virat Kohli remained unavailable citing personal reasons. Earlier, he missed the first two Tests while Ravindra Jadeja and KL Rahul returned to the line-up, although their participation is subject to getting a clearance from BCCIs medical team.The highlights of Indias last 3 Tests vs England:- Kohli will remain unavailable.- BCCI support Kohlis decision.- Rahul & Jadeja is subject to fitness.- Akash Deep in the squad.- Patidar, Sarfaraz in the squad.- 5 spinners: Ashwin, Jadeja, Kuldeep, Axar, Sundar. pic.twitter.com/W7Aq91YZKC— CricketMAN2 (@ImTanujSingh) February 10, 2024The selectors have meanwhile added a fresh fast bowler in Akash Deep. The third Test match will be played at the Saurashtra Cricket Association stadium in Rajkot on February 15.
