India could miss the services of Bhuvneshwar Kumar for the entirety of the Test series against England if the latest reports are anything to go by.
The Indian pacer was ruled out of the first three of the five Tests after aggravating a lower back injury in the preceding ODI series. At the time of announcing the squad for the first three Tests, the Indian selectors had stated that Bhuvneshwar could return for the final two matches but that scenario is looking bleaker by the passing minute.
According to a report by the Mumbai Mirror, Bhuvneshwar’s recovery has been slower than expected and he is now set to miss the entire Test series.
The seamer is currently recuperating at the National Cricket Academy (NCA) in Bengaluru after having returned from England. The report states that sources at the NCA and the Indian team management in Nottingham have resigned themselves to the fact that the 28-year-old will not feature in England again this summer.
Bhuvneshwar had aggravated his injury in the ODI series.
This will come as a big blow for the Indian team who could have done with Bhuvneshwar’s mastery of swing and seam in helping conditions in England.
The visitors were handed a minor boost ahead of the Trent Bridge Test which gets underway on Saturday with pacer Jasprit Bumrah being declared fit to play. Bumrah had endured a lengthy spell on the sidelines after fracturing his thumb in the second T20 against Ireland in Dublin earlier this summer.