IND vs ENG 2nd Test: Jasprit Bumrah OUT, Nitish Reddy In- 2 Changes India Likely To Make: Report

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IND vs ENG 2nd Test: With the second Test between India and England set to begin on July 3 at Edgbaston, Birmingham, Team India is likely to ring in a couple of key changes to bounce back from their defeat in the opening game at Headingley.

According to developments from the Indian camp as reported by The Indian Express, speedster Jasprit Bumrah is likely to be rested, while batting all-rounder Nitish Kumar Reddy is in strong contention to make his Test debut.

India trail 0-1 in the five-match Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy series, making the second Test a must-win for the visitors. Bumrah, who bowled long spells in the first Test and remains central to India's plans, might be rested with an eye on workload management ahead of the third Test at Lord's. This strategic move opens up an opportunity for a fresh face in the pace attack, with Akash Deep emerging as front-runners to take his place.

However, the spotlight is firmly on Nitish Kumar Reddy, who is likely to replace Shardul Thakur. India opted for Thakur as a bowling all-rounder in the opening Test, but his underwhelming performance with both bat and ball has paved the way for a rethinking of the team combination.

"Nitish is very close to getting a game. Obviously, he was fantastic in Australia. Coming into the team and playing the way he did. We just felt on balance for the last game, we wanted to go with the bowling all-rounder, which we thought Shardul was slightly ahead on the bowling front. We're looking at ways of rejigging the puzzle so we can get a batting all-rounder in. And obviously, Nitish is our premium batting all-rounder at the moment. So I would say it's a very good chance to play this Test," assistant coach Ryan ten Doeschate said on Monday, offering a big hint at the selection move.

Meanwhile, Washington Sundar also garnered considerable attention at the nets. He bowled long spells alongside the two frontline spinners - Ravindra Jadeja and Kuldeep Yadav - targeting India's top-order batters. All three spinners rotated tirelessly in the nets, while head coach Gautam Gambhir and Bumrah observed silently from the background, exchanging discreet conversations with their hands covering their mouths to avoid lip-reading.

Though India is likely to go with two spinners for the Edgbaston Test, the identity of the second spinner remains uncertain. While Sundar bowled effectively, he later had an extended batting session, fending off sharp deliveries from India's throwdown specialists. The intensity of the session suggested that the team management sees him as a genuine lower-order batting option. Yet, as things stand, Washington could be the first-choice spinner for this game.

As for Kuldeep Yadav, the left-arm wrist spinner had a long net stint but was only scheduled to face local net bowlers and not the top Indian pacers - an unusual sign if he was to be part of the playing XI. "If he was to be in the playing XI, considering the late-order batting concerns, he would have faced a test of fire against the top Indian bowlers," Ryan ten Doeschate noted on Kuldeep's preparation.

With Bumrah's expected absence and Nitish's likely inclusion, Team India looks set to experiment with its combination in a bid to level the series. A final decision is expected before the toss at Edgbaston, but one thing is certain - changes are coming, and India's team balance will look significantly different in the second Test.