In a positive development, Team India’s head coach Gautam Gambhir has rejoined the squad in England ahead of the first Test at Headingley in Leeds. He had briefly returned to India to be with his mother, who was admitted to the ICU following a heart attack. Several reports have indicated that Gambhir's mother is yet to recover fully, but she is in a much better state, something that has given the head coach a signal to join the team again for national responsibilities.
With just two days left for the match, the Indian team arrived at the stadium for their first practice session on June 18. Gambhir joined them shortly after, making his appearance within 24 hours of his return.
The Indian team receives a big boost with the arrival of the 43-year-old as his experience of playing in England is crucial as almost half the team is playing their first series in the United Kingdom.
The relatively inexperienced team of the touring side is also in the midst of an enormous transition. The selectors have just named Shubman Gill the new captain of the red-ball team, after the surprise retirements of veteran pair Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma - his predecessors. Rishabh Pant will be Gill's stand-by, and this will be the very first series that India plays with a new team.
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Harshit Rana Joins India Squad for Leeds Test Match
At the same time, the Indian side included Harshit Rana in their team before the first Test. The pace bowler's inclusion has been reported to occur in the wake of a group of players in the initial squad reporting injury issues.
Rana, who has been a member of India A team in a couple of matches against England Lions as well as intra-squad match against the senior team, was asked to remain back even as the tour came to a close. He is also likely to head back home after the Headingley match.
India’s Revised Squad for 1st Test Only
Shubman Gill, Rishabh Pant, Ravindra Jadeja, KL Rahul, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj, Karun Nair, Prasidh Krishna, Kuldeep Yadav, Washington Sundar, Akash Deep, Shardul Thakur, Abhimanyu Easwaran, B Sai Sudharsan, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Arshdeep Singh, and Harshit Rana
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