5 Indian players who can come in as injury replacements on Australia tour

The Indian cricket team is all set to make its return to the cricket field after staying away from the international arena for over 250 days. Virat Kohli and co. have landed in Australia after a grueling IPL 2020 season. All players have enough match practice heading into this tour. However, the players have stated that life in a bio-bubble is not so great.

Apart from staying physically fit, the players also need to develop their mental strength to perform well in such competitions. The inconsistencies of many big names in IPL 2020 highlighted the impact of the bio-bubble. Plus, the Indian cricketers have not played a 50-over match or a Test match since March.

Thus, there exists a possibility of any player getting ruled out of the tour with an injury problem. Varun Chakravarthy has already lost his spot in the T20I squad to T Natarajan owing to his shoulder injury. Besides, the Indian limited-overs vice-captain Rohit Sharma will also miss the ODI and T20I series because of injury issues. Thanks to IPL 2020, the BCCI would have a clear idea about all the domestic players’ current form.

Here are the five players who can come in as injury replacements if required during the Australian tour:

5. Ishan Kishan 

Former India U19 captain Ishan Kishan impressed everyone with his terrific performances in IPL 2020. He was the highest run-getter for the Mumbai Indians this season. It is pertinent to note that Kishan had missed a few matches at the start because of his shoulder niggle. Still, he performed consistently and played many match-winning knocks for the IPL champions.

Kishan could have been a solid back-up wicket-keeping option in the limited overs teams. However, the selectors preferred Sanju Samson over him. Still, the left-handed batsman has an outside chance of making his international debut during the Australian tour.

Wriddhiman Saha, who is the team’s first choice keeper in Tests, is currently dealing with an injury. Although Rishabh Pant is present in the squad, the selectors might want to include Ishan in the team if Saha does not recover. Kishan has played magnificently for Jharkhand in the Ranji Trophy. Thus, he could come in as an injury replacement.