Shoaib Bashir arrives in Hyderabad after belatedly receiving visa

GEORGE DOBELL IN HYDERABAD: Among those he will see is Dan Lawrence, who joined the squad the day before the first Test as a replacement for Harry Brook, who was obliged to leave the tour for personal reasons

George Dobell | 28/01/2024 at 05:17

England finally have a full complement of 16 players in India.

Shoaib Bashir, whose arrival was delayed by some reluctance to issue him a visa, has now arrived in Hyderabad and joined the squad at the ground on Sunday afternoon.

Among those he will see is Dan Lawrence, who joined the squad the day before the first Test as a replacement for Harry Brook, who was obliged to leave the tour for personal reasons.

England may still require reinforcements, however. Jack Leach sustained a blow to his left knee in the field on the first evening of the first Test.

While he has continued to play a limited part in the match, he is clearly inconvenienced with the England management confirming he has significant swelling. He has to be considered a doubt ahead of the second Test which starts in Visakhapatnam on February 2.

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^{Bashir joins the likes of Jack Leach and Tom Hartley in India (Stu Forster/Getty Images)}

The England Lions squad is also in India at present. They finish their series against India A on February 1, with the likes of Callum Parkinson (another left-arm spinner) and Jack Carson (an off-spinner), who missed the last game due to injury, among the spin options in the squad.

Liam Dawson, who enjoyed an outstanding season with bat and ball in 2023, is currently playing franchise cricket in South Africa.

The Cricketer's chief correspondent George Dobell will be providing full analysis and reaction from day two in Hyderabad.

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