Shoaib Bashir to debut in Visakhapatnam Test vs India

England spinner Shoaib Bashir will make his debut against India in the second Test at Visakhapatnam, starting Friday (February 2), the ECB has announced. Bashir will come into the side in place of Somerset teammate Jack Leach, who was ruled out after injuring his knee in the first Test in Hyderabad.

In his only County season, Bashir has picked up 10 wickets at 67, which are modest at best, but skipper Ben Stokes is excited to see the skillset he brings in.

"The height he bowled from, it was very obvious that he put a lot of action, a lot of revolutions on the ball. It was something I looked at and thought, this could be pretty good for India. I've played a lot of games out here. As a batter, you know what is hard to face, especially from a spin point of view," Stokes said of Bashir.

In another change, Mark Wood, who bowled 25 wicketless overs in the first Test, makes way for James Anderson. England have once again gone in with just one seamer for the game, and it is believed that Anderson, who is just 10 wickets away from 700 Test wickets, will offer more control than Wood. 

Wood did not do all that badly in the first Test, conceding at just 2.48 an over, but never really looked threatening enough, which is something England believe Anderson will provide. 

In his 13 Tests in India so far, Anderson has picked up 34 wickets at 29.32.  England lead the five-match Test series 1-0 thanks to a 28-run victory in the first Test in Hyderabad.

England XI for second Test: Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Ollie Pope, Joe Root, Jonny Bairstow, Ben Stokes (c), Ben Foakes (wk), Rehan Ahmed, Tom Hartley, Shoaib Bashir, James Anderson