Signing you in

Selectors have picked recovering players in the past when they were close to returning. But with four players still awaiting clearance, there is plenty of uncertainty around India’s squad for a three-match home series, especially when other options are available.

Bumrah is the biggest name on the list. He injured his left knee during the second ODI against England in Cardiff in July and has not played since. Washington suffered a hamstring injury during the same ODI series, while Nitish missed the UK and Zimbabwe tours with a quadriceps injury. Harshit’s injury troubles go further back. A knee injury required surgery and ruled him out of the T20 World Cup before he suffered another setback on the UK tour.

Encouragingly, Varun Chakaravarthy, who suffered a hamstring injury during the T20I series in England in July and subsequently missed the Zimbabwe tour, has returned to the squad.

India play Afghanistan in Delhi on September 13, 15 and 17. Later in the month, they travel to Japan to defend their Asian Games gold medal, with the men’s cricket competition beginning on September 24. The Afghanistan series could therefore serve as useful preparation for players likely to be needed at the Asian Games.

There is also a recent example of players picked subject to fitness clearance eventually missing a series. Bumrah and Sai Sudharsan were both named in India’s squad for the two-Test series in Sri Lanka, with their selection subject to fitness clearance. Neither recovered in time to make the tour.

That is what makes the latest selection interesting. It makes sense to wait for an established player to regain fitness for a major tournament. But for a bilateral T20I series, India have options to look elsewhere.

Mayank Yadav is one of them. The pacer had an encouraging tour of Zimbabwe in July, when India swept the T20I series 3-0. Mayank took five wickets in three matches. The numbers don’t tell the whole story. He bowled with high pace, troubled batsmen with his speed and finished with 3/29 in the final T20I.

For someone whose young career has repeatedly been interrupted by injuries, simply getting through three international matches was important. Zimbabwe gave Mayank a chance to return to the India side and show that his pace was still there.

Afghanistan could have been the next step. Another three matches would have given India a longer look at him while allowing Mayank to build on his return. There is no question over what Bumrah brings to the side. Washington, Nitish and Harshit also give India different options. The selectors may have received positive updates about their recovery and expect all four to be fit by September 13.

If they are cleared to play, there will be little reason for concern. But for now, four of the 15 players picked are not certain to be available. If there is still doubt over their fitness, India could have used these three games to give someone like Mayank another opportunity. With other players available, the question is: why pick four players who are not yet certain to be fit?

The rest of the squad paints a familiar picture. Shreyas Iyer will make his home debut as India’s T20 captain, with Tilak Varma his deputy, while Vaibhav Sooryavanshi retains his place after an excellent Zimbabwe tour. Sanju Samson returns and is one of two wicketkeepers alongside Ishan Kishan. Abhishek Sharma, Shivam Dube, Axar Patel, Ravi Bishnoi and Arshdeep Singh make up the rest of the squad.

India’s squad: Shreyas Iyer [C], Abhishek Sharma, Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, Sanju Samson [WK], Ishan Kishan [WK], Tilak Varma [VC], Shivam Dube, Nitish Kumar Reddy*, Axar Patel, Washington Sundar*, Varun Chakaravarthy, Ravi Bishnoi, Jasprit Bumrah*, Arshdeep Singh, Harshit Rana*

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