After suffering a low back spasm while fielding in the first Twenty20 International, India's middle-order batsman Rinku Singh missed the second and third Twenty20 Internationals against England.
However, he is now fully fit to play in the fourth Twenty20 International against the Jos Buttler-led team on January 31 at Maharashtra Cricket Association Stadium in Pune.
In the fourth Twenty20 International match against England in Pune, Rinku Singh will play, after Ryan Ten Doeschate, India's assistant coach, certified that he is healthy. The former Netherlands all-rounder said during a press conference on Thursday that Rinku Singh will be fit to play.
"Rinku Singh is fit. He will be ready to go tomorrow," said the Dutchman, who joined the Indian camp in the new role last September. The announcement gives India a huge boost after they struggled at batting in the third Twenty20 International and were unable to reach the visitors' goal of 172. Ramandeep Singh was given a chance in place of Rinku.
Washington Sundar could not make the squad if Rinku is added because India currently has three spinners in its lineup. In the first game of the series, Rinku Singh did not bat, and in the two games Sundar played, Washington Sundar was unable to have much of an influence.
Following the first T20I, Nitish Reddy sustained an injury in addition to Rinku Singh. His injury is more severe, though, and he will be sidelined for at least four weeks. After the injury news, Shivam Dube and Ramandeep Singh were added to the team; however, it is unclear if they would remain with the squad for the remainder of the series.
Who will Rinku Singh replace in the team?
Due to a lower back spasm of Rinku Singh, Dhruv Jurel was brought in for the two games by head coach Gautam Gambhir. In the second match, he batted at number five, but because he didn't fit the format, he was moved to number seven in the third game. The team management was criticized for Jurel's batting position, as he only managed to score six runs in the two games.
Gambhir might select Dube for the fourth Twenty20 International if the Indian middle order faces trouble against Adil Rashid. He could also test Ramandeep Singh, who is a better seamer than Dube and also looks promising as a finisher. He hasn't been challenged against a quality pace attack, though.