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News Rohit Sharma to miss first Test in Perth He will join India's squad ahead of the second Test in Adelaide Nagraj Gollapudi 17-Nov-2024 • 21 mins ago Jasprit Bumrah is set to lead India in Rohit Sharma's absence • AFP/Getty Images {"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"ImageObject","contentUrl":"https://img1.hscicdn.
com/image/upload/f_auto/lsci/db/PICTURES/CMS/375200/375277.4.jpg","caption":"Jasprit Bumrah is set to lead India in Rohit Sharma's absence"} Rohit Sharma will not be available to lead India in first Test of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy, which starts on November 22 at the Optus Stadium in Perth.
ESPNcricinfo has learned that Rohit, who stayed back home for the birth of his second child, will join the India squad ahead of the second Test, which is a day-night match starting on December 4 in Adelaide. While Rohit had communicated to BCCI and the national selectors in advance that he could potentially miss the Perth Test , he had kept open the option of last-minute travel based on when the child was born. Rohit and his wife Ritika welcomed their second child on Friday, a week ahead of the first Test, prompting the possibility of his travelling to Perth.
However, Rohit has communicated to BCCI that he will be available to play the two-day pink-ball warm-up game against the Australian Prime Minister's XI before the day-night Test in Adelaide. Related Can Jaiswal counter fire with fire in Australia? Injured Gill to miss first Test in Perth with fractured thumb Boost for India as KL Rahul returns to bat in Sunday training Vice-captain Jasprit Bumrah is set to lead India in Perth in Rohit Sharma's absence. Bumrah has led India in one Test previously, the fifth Test of their two-part 2021-22 tour of England at Edgbaston, when Rohit had tested positive for Covid-19.
India are now set to begin the Test series without two members of their first-choice top three, with No. 3 Shubman Gill also set to miss the Perth Test with a fractured thumb. KL Rahul and the uncapped Abhimanyu Easwaran were the two main candidates to open alongside Yashasvi Jaiswal in Rohit's absence, but there is now a chance that both will feature.
Rahul had briefly come under an injury cloud himself, having gone off the field after taking a blow to the elbow while batting against Prasidh Krishna during the first day of the Indians' intra-squad practice match at the WACA. Those fears were assuaged on Sunday morning, though, when Rahul returned to the crease and batted for about an hour. Apart from Abhimanyu and Rahul, India will have another top-order candidate in Devdutt Padikkal, who was part of India A's shadow tour of Australia and has stayed back with the Test squad.
More to follow...
Rohit Sharma Jasprit Bumrah India ICC World Test Championship India tour of Australia Nagraj Gollapudi is news editor at ESPNcricinfo.
