Reason? Usko ek right hamstring strain ho gaya, jo Zimbabwe ke saath recent one-off Test ke dauraan hua tha Trent Bridge mein. Match England ne innings aur 45 run se jeeta tha, lekin Atkinson match ke last din sirf 3 over daal paya, wo bhi kaafi cautious tareeke se. ECB ne 27 May 2025 ko confirm kiya ki wo ODI series nahi khelega, jo Thursday ko Edgbaston mein start ho rahi hai. Lekin good news ye hai ki wo 20 June se India ke khilaaf shuru hone wali 5-Test series ke liye fit ho sakta hai.
27 saal ka Surrey seamer Atkinson, England ke Test setup ka kaafi important hissa raha hai July 2024 mein debut ke baad se. Ab tak 12 Tests mein 55 wickets le chuka hai, 22.30 ke average se. Debut mein hi Lord’s pe 12 wickets leke sabko impress kiya tha. Injury serious nahi hai, aur ECB ka medical team uski rehab supervise karega taaki India series se pehle wo full fit ho jaye.
India ke against 5 Tests scheduled hain:
- Headingley (20 June)
- Edgbaston (2 July)
- Lord’s (10 July)
- Old Trafford (23 July)
- Kia Oval (31 July)
England ke bowling options pehle hi thode tight chal rahe hain — Jofra Archer (thumb injury), Mark Wood (knee), aur Chris Woakes aur Brydon Carse jaise players abhi recently injury se wapas aaye hain. Archer ki jagah Luke Wood ODI squad mein aa chuka hai, lekin Atkinson ka koi direct replacement announce nahi hua hai. Carse, Saqib Mahmood, Jamie Overton aur Matthew Potts ab seam bowling options cover karenge West Indies ke against.
Zimbabwe ke saath Test match historic tha — 22 saal baad dono teams mile. Atkinson ne first innings mein 2-58 liya tha injury ke bawajood. Zak Crawley, Ollie Pope, aur Ben Duckett ne centuries maari, aur bowling mein Ben Stokes (2-11) aur Shoaib Bashir (3-62) ne zabardast performance diya. Last din Atkinson ka limited bowling dekh ke thoda concern tha, lekin ab lag raha hai ki wo time pe recover kar lega.
India series ICC World Test Championship ka part hai, toh England uske liye full ready rehna chahta hai. Plan hai ki Atkinson Stokes, Woakes, Carse ke saath pace attack mein ho, aur Jofra Archer bhi later Tests ke liye comeback target kar raha hai.
ODI series West Indies ke khilaaf, Harry Brook ke naye captaincy tenure ka start hoga. Atkinson ki absence thoda loss hai, lekin England ke paas kaafi depth hai pace department mein. Series ka first match Thursday ko Edgbaston mein hai — toss 12:30 PM aur pehla ball 1:00 PM. Live dekho Sky Sports pe.
