ENG vs IND: 3 Players who can replace injured Shardul Thakur for Lord's Test

India had every chance of starting their 2021-23 World Test Championship campaign on a positive note. However, rain played spoilsport as the final day of their opening Test against England at the Trent Bridge in Nottingham was washed off due to rain.

Prior to the second Test, starting August 12, the visitors have been faced with a headache as Shardul Thakur has sustained a hamstring injury. Thakur played an important role in the first game, picking four wickets, one of which was of English skipper Joe Root, who also got the POTM award.

He is also more than handy with the bat in hand as he showed during India’s historic Test win against Australia at the Gabba in Brisbane. Nevertheless, with a day left before the Lord’s Test, India have players, who can replace Thakur in the eleven.

Here are three players, who can replace Shardul Thakur for the Lord’s Test:

1. Ishant Sharma

Ishant Sharma has been India’s workhorse over the years since his debut back in 2007 against Bangladesh. With 306 wickets in his kitty, the speedster is only six wickets short of becoming India’s most successful pacer, surpassing Zaheer Khan.

Though he hasn’t had much success in the spin-friendly home conditions, the Delhi-born has shown his class, time and again, in overseas conditions. Ishant has fond memories of playing at the Lord’s. Back in 2014, India won the second Test of the series by 95 runs after Ishant’s seven-wicket haul in the fourth innings.

He also became the Player of the Match for his stupendous spell when the Brits were chasing 319 to win. Sharma has a truckload of experience and he has the potential to repeat his heroics even in the upcoming encounter.

2. Umesh Yadav

Umesh Yadav forayed into Test cricket way back in 2011 but hasn’t quite been able to cement his place in the playing eleven. In 48 Tests, the Vidarbha fast bowler has picked up 148 wickets with five four-wicket hauls and three five-wicket hauls.

In the last couple of years, Indian pace bowling has grown leaps and bounds, sometimes even overshadowing their talked-about spin department. He, along with Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Shami and Ishant, has ruffled a lot of feathers.

The 33-year-old can be a valuable addition going into the Lord’s Test due to his ability to generate pace and seam the ball around. The seamer can bowl with the new ball and can also generate reverse-swing with the old cherry. If he finds his rhythm, the English batters could find themselves in a lot of trouble.

3. Ravi Ashwin

Ravi Ashwin was the leading wicket-taker in the 2019-21 cycle of the WTC. The veteran toppled the likes of Australia’s Pat Cummins and New Zealand’s Tim Southee to accomplish the milestone. Earlier this year, he also scored a century against the Three Lions at the Chepauk.

However, despite the impressive shows, the Tamil Nadu-born couldn’t find a place in the eleven in the first Test. Earlier, even Sanjay Manjrekar, the former Indian cricketer, picked Ashwin in his eleven for the Lord’s Test.

Ashwin is only 23 wickets short of becoming India’s second-most successful Test bowler after Anil Kumble. The off-spinner has 413 wickets from 79 Tests with as many as 30 five-wicket hauls. Moreover, the 34-year-old adds value to India’s batting, having scored five tons in the longest format.