India captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni said pacer Umesh Yadav, who is nursing a sore back, is likely to be rested for the second Test against England, commencing in Mumbai on Friday.
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"Umesh is doubtful for this Test match. He has a sore back, so when we are playing with two fast bowlers and two spinners I don't think we can take a risk with him. So, most likely, he will miss this Test match," said Dhoni, at the pre-match media conference at the Wankhede stadium on Thursday.
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The skipper also ruled out any chance of including a third spinner in the team.
"Not really. We are looking at a 2-2 combination. Add balance to the side. Also you don't know exactly whether you are bowling first or batting first. Which means if the spinners are bowling and there is not much turn for them, the ball is not stopping. It may be difficult for them to restrict the batsmen," Dhoni said.
"He (Harbhajan) has to wait as (Ravichandran) Ashwin and (Pragyan) Ojha are bowling well," Dhoni added, when asked if Harbhajan will be sitting out again after being in the reserves for the opening game at Ahmedabad.
In the first Test, which India won by nine wickets, Ashwin went wicket-less for a long time in the second innings till he dismissed Graeme Swann as the tail-end batsman attempted a reverse sweep and was bowled.
The 26-year-old off-spinner had picked three wickets in England's first innings. He was a bit unlucky though as a few chances off his bowling went abegging.
Ojha, on the other hand, bowled well, claiming five and four wickets respectively in the two innings.
Asked whether speedster Ishant Sharma would replace Yadav if the latter fails to make it to the playing eleven, Dhoni said the Delhi bowler has a good chance of playing.
"There is a very good chance he will play, but we won't announce the playing eleven (today)," he said.
Photograph: Adnan Abidi/Reuters
