Ravindra Jadeja and KL Rahul ruled out of second Test against England

Ravindra Jadeja and KL Rahul have been ruled out of the second Test match against England

KL Rahul and Ravindra Jadeja have been ruled out of the second Test match against England (Getty Images)

India have been dealt a blow ahead of the second Test match against England, with both Ravindra Jadeja and KL Rahul ruled out of the game at Visakhapatnam.

Jadeja was the highest scorer for India with 87 in the first innings, and took five wickets in the match overall. He sustained a hamstring injury on the fourth day of the match, possibly when he went for a quick single and was run out by a spectacular piece of fielding from England captain Ben Stokes.

Rahul meanwhile will miss the upcoming Test with a quadricep injury, also sustained during England’s 28-run victory in Hyderabad.

Before the series started, India talisman Virat Kohli withdrew from the squad for the first two matches due to personal reasons, and Rahul replaced him in the middle order.

Pace bowler Mohammed Shami and wicketkeeper Rishabh Pant are the other notable absentees. Shami has a heel issue, while Pant has still not fully from a serious road accident in December 2022.

With selection problems mounting, India have called up Sarfaraz Khan, Sourabh Kumar and Washington Sundar to the squad for the next match, which starts on Friday.

Sarfaraz, aged 26 is a middle-order batter with an impressive first-class average of 68.85, although he has not yet received an international cap. Spinning all-rounder Sundar has played four Tests, including three during England’s previous tour in 2020-21, which India won 3-1. Kumar is a left-arm spinner with almost 300 first-class wickets.

There are fears England could suffer an injury blow of their own, with Jack Leach seen hobbling the day after the first Test finished. During the match he took a blow to the knee that limited his ability to bowl.

Harry Brook withdrew from the tour before the series, for personal reasons, and Dan Lawrence was called up as his replacement.