By The Sampadak Express
In an unexpected turn of events, Team India head coach Gautam Gambhir has flown back to India from England after his mother suffered a heart attack and was admitted to the ICU in New Delhi. According to sources, Gambhir left for India on Thursday along with his family and reached Delhi the same day.
Gambhir had traveled to England ahead of the senior team to oversee India A’s performance against the England Lions in the ongoing 2-match unofficial Test series. The situation unfolded just as India was preparing for an intra-squad match on Friday. This is not the first time personal reasons have forced Gambhir to cut short an overseas assignment a similar situation arose during the Border-Gavaskar Trophy in Australia.
A BCCI official confirmed the development, stating: “Gautam’s mother had a heart attack on Wednesday. He and his family left for India on Thursday and have reached Delhi.”
Despite the concerning development, there are reports that Gambhir’s mother is now showing signs of recovery, although she remains in the ICU. If her condition continues to improve, Gambhir is expected to rejoin the team in England before the first Test match, which is scheduled to begin on June 20.
In his absence, assistant coach Ryan ten Doeschate will temporarily take charge of the team during the four-day intra-squad match between India and India A. He will be supported by the rest of the coaching staff, including bowling coach Morne Morkel and batting coach Sitanshu Kotak.
India’s Test Squad for England Series:
Shubman Gill (captain), Rishabh Pant (vice-captain), Yashasvi Jaiswal, KL Rahul, Sai Sudharsan, Abhimanyu Easwaran, Karun Nair, Nitish Reddy, Ravindra Jadeja, Dhruv Jurel, Washington Sundar, Shardul Thakur, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj, Prasidh Krishna, Akash Deep, Arshdeep Singh, Kuldeep Yadav.
England Squad for 1st Test vs India:
Shoaib Bashir, Jacob Bethell, Harry Brook, Brydon Carse, Sam Cook, Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Jamie Overton, Ollie Pope, Joe Root, Jamie Smith (wicketkeeper), Ben Stokes (captain), Josh Tongue, Chris Woakes.
