Gautam Gambhir and Ishant Sharma on the selector's radar for England series

Gautam Gambhir and Ishant Sharma are on the selector’s radar for the upcoming series against England. There were injuries concerning the selection of Gambhir when he hurt his shoulder in the final encounter of the India v New Zealand series.

Ishant Sharma on the other hand had health issues prior to the start of the series, something that subsequently ruled him out of action from the series. His replacement, Bhuvneshwar Kumar impressed for a bit when he picked up a five-wicket haul.

However, Kumar was subsequently injured for the following few Tests wherein he was replaced by Shardul Thakur. It seems highly unlikely that the 25-year old Bhuvneshwar Kumar will be fit for the upcoming series. Shardul Thakur is expected to retain his place in the side.

Gambhir, who made a comeback in the just-concluded New Zealand series, gave a good account of himself by scoring a half century in the final Test at Indore before accumulating 147 in Delhi’s last Ranji Trophy match against Odisha.

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With opener KL Rahul still nursing a bad hamstring, it would seem quite clear that the Indians would persist with the three opening batsmen in the line of fire. This would mean that Murali Vijay would be a sure selection in the side with Gautam Gambhir and Shikhar Dhawan feeding off the scraps to open with him.

In spite of the plethora of injuries the Indian team has had to deal with in recent times, it would seem as though the Indians are not expected to make wholesale changes. The nucleus of the side is expected to be very much the same as England come calling shortly after their tour of Bangladesh.

The five-match series will be a litmus test for the No.1-ranked home side, with England having won the last three Test series between the two nations — two in England and one in India.