Injured Nitish Kumar Reddy makes way for Shivam Dube in India squad for England T20Is

The Indian camp could not have asked for a better start to the white-ball series against England at home. The hosts welcomed the English with a dominating 7-wicket victory in the first T20I at Eden Gardens. However, significant trouble has emerged for the Indian camp ahead of the second match in Chennai. India is currently dealing with not one, but multiple injury scares, with four of the five matches remaining in the India vs England T20I series. On the morning of the second T20I, it was reported that young opener Abhishek Sharma, who starred in India's victory at Eden Gardens, had twisted his ankle. Now, all-rounder Nitish Kumar Reddy has also been ruled out due to injury. In his place, Shivam Dube has been called up to replace Reddy for the remainder of the T20I series.

Nitish Kumar Reddy poses injury scare as India adds Shivam Dube in the squad for India vs England T20I series

Nitish Kumar Reddy made his debut for India during the Bangladesh Tour of India in the T20I series. After an impressive showing in the Border Gavaskar Trophy where Nitish notched his maiden ton in his debut Test series, the all-rounder returned to the T20I setup in the England series. In the first T20I at Eden Gardens, Nitish Kumar Reddy did not bowl at all and with Abhishek Sharma pretty much completing the 133 chase all by himself, the all-rounder didn't get to bat either. However, Nitish was seen fielding in the opening innings where he held on to two catches. However, as it stands now, the young gun has been ruled out of the remainder of the series due to an injury.

Meanwhile, all-rounder Shivam Dube, who recently represented Mumbai in their Ranji Trophy clash against Jammu and Kashmir, has been added to India's squad for the remainder of the series. The left-handed batter will join the national team in Rajkot, where the third T20I is scheduled to be played. According to a recent report, Dube has been drafted into the squad as Nitish Kumar Reddy continues to recover from an injury sustained earlier.

Dube, who recently returned to competitive cricket after a back injury, had a challenging outing in Mumbai's Ranji Trophy match against Jammu and Kashmir, scoring ducks in both innings. Mumbai suffered a heavy defeat in the game. Despite this, Dube's overall form has been promising since his return. He rejoined the Mumbai squad for the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy earlier this season, helping them clinch the title under Shreyas Iyer’s captaincy. 

Initially, Dube was not part of the squad for the T20I series against England, with selectors opting for Nitish Kumar Reddy and Hardik Pandya as their preferred all-rounders. The all-rounder, moreover, was part of India’s T20 World Cup-winning squad in 2024. He made significant contributions in the tournament, scoring 133 runs, including a pivotal 27-run knock in the final against South Africa. His last T20I appearance came in July 2024 against Sri Lanka.