Fast bowler Auqib Nabi has been named as Jasprit Bumrah‘s replacement for the upcoming two-Test series against Sri Lanka after India’s pace spearhead was officially ruled out due to an unresolved left knee injury sustained during last month’s ODI series against England.
The Jammu and Kashmir pacer has earned his maiden senior India call-up, becoming only the third cricketer from the state to break into the national side after Parvez Rasool and Umran Malik, both of whom represented India in white-ball cricket.
Nabi forced his way into contention after claiming 104 wickets across the last two Ranji Trophy seasons, including 60 scalps in the 2025-26 campaign, playing a key role in Jammu and Kashmir’s maiden Ranji Trophy title triumph. He was also part of the India A squad that toured Sri Lanka recently, where he picked up six wickets in two first-class matches.
Bumrah picked up an impact injury during the ODI series against England and missed the third and final match at Lord’s. While initial reports suggested he had cleared the mandatory fitness tests at the BCCI’s Centre of Excellence (CoE) in Bengaluru and was expected to feature in Sri Lanka, it later emerged that the swelling in his knee was more serious than first assessed.
The BCCI’s Sports Science team subsequently advised against rushing Bumrah back into Test cricket, given India’s packed calendar over the coming months.
“The two people who run the CoE, Dhananjay and Thulasi, have decided that Bumrah can’t be risked. Initially, both the team management and selection committee were made to believe that Bumrah could be available for at least one of the two Tests,” a BCCI source told PTI on Sunday, adding that the developments had left several stakeholders surprised.
India begin the two-Test series against Sri Lanka in Galle on August 15, with the second Test scheduled in Colombo from August 23.
Meanwhile, there is still no official update on Sai Sudharsan, whose participation also depends on receiving fitness clearance. According to PTI, the left-hander batted for 75 minutes in the nets at the CoE as he continues to recover from the foot injury he sustained during the recent India A tour of Sri Lanka.
India’s updated squad for the Test series against Sri Lanka: Shubman Gill (Captain), KL Rahul (Vice-Captain), Yashasvi Jaiswal, Rishabh Pant (WK), Sai Sudharsan*, Dhruv Jurel (WK), Ravindra Jadeja, Kuldeep Yadav, Manav Suthar, Mohammed Siraj, Prasidh Krishna, Gurnoor Brar, Devdutt Padikkal, Saransh Jain, Auqib Nabi.
