Ravichandran Ashwin expected to join Indian squad before warm-up game against Leicestershire: Reports

Veteran off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin is expected to join the Indian Test squad in England ahead of the four-day warm-up against Leicestershire, which begins on June 24.

Earlier, there were concerns over whether the 35-year-old would be available for the rescheduled Test in Birmingham, starting on July 1. On June 16, he missed the flight that members of the Test squad took to reach the UK after testing positive for COVID-19.

According to the latest reports, though, the spinner is all set to join the Indian team after fully recovering from COVID-19. The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) and the team management in England have confirmed to Cricbuzz that travel arrangements are being made for the seasoned off-spinner to reach the UK as soon as possible and join the rest of the squad.

The report added that Jayant Yadav was asked to be on standby in case Ashwin did not recover. However, that option will not be explored now that the experienced spinner is fit and is set to fly out in the next 24 hours.

Meanwhile, head coach Rahul Dravid, keeper-batter Rishabh Pant and Shreyas Iyer have also joined the Indian squad in Leicester. All of them were part of the T20I series against South Africa at home, which ended on Sunday (June 19) in Bengaluru. As reported earlier, KL Rahul will be unavailable for the Test in Birmingham due to a groin injury.

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Ashwin did not feature in any of the Tests in England last year

In what was seen as a controversial ploy by many, Ashwin did not feature in any of the four Tests India played in England during their tour last year. The Tamil Nadu cricketer is the second-leading wicket-taker for India in Tests, having claimed 442 scalps in 86 matches at an average of 24.13.

Left-arm spinner Ravindra Jadeja was preferred as the first-choice slow bowler for the Tests in England last year. He did not have a great series with the ball, claiming only six wickets in four matches at an average of 45.33.

India, however, won two of the four Tests and were 2-1 when the last Test at Old Trafford in Manchester was canceled due to COVID-19 cases in the Indian camp.

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