Fit KL Rahul set to open in Perth; Rohit Sharma to miss first Test as Bumrah handed captaincy
Perth, Nov 17: KL Rahul allayed concerns surrounding his fitness with an extended net session here on Sunday, indicating his readiness to open in the first Test against Australia as skipper Rohit Sharma will join the team only in Adelaide after spending time with his new-born baby.
Pace spearhead Jasprit Bumrah will lead the team in Rohit's absence.
Rahul had left the field for medical attention on Friday after sustaining a blow on his elbow by pacer Prasidh Krishna while batting in an intra-squad practice match at the WACA ground.
The first of the five Tests in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy will begin at the Optus Stadium from November 22, while the second Test at Adelaide starts from December 6.
In all likelihood, the team management will pair Rahul with Yashasvi Jaiswal, and the 32-year-old's recovery has come as a massive relief after Shubman Gill was ruled out of the first Test with a fractured thumb.
Rahul batted without any major discomfort for a considerable time and participated in all the drills during the three-hour net session on this day.
"I had got a bad hit on Day 1 of the game. I am feeling good today, getting ready for the first game. Happy that I could come here early and get used to the conditions," Rahul said in a video shared by BCCI on X.
"Yeah, I got a lot of time to prepare for this series and I am excited and looking forward to it," he added.
In fact, head coach Gautam Gambhir too had indicated a promotion up the order for Rahul during the pre-departure press meet in Mumbai in the event of Rohit missing the opening Test.
Team Physio Kamlesh Jain said Rahul has responded well to the treatment.
"The key for us was to ensure that there is no fracture there. It's 48 hours since the impact and he has responded well to treatments. He should be ready to go," said Jain in the video.
Yogesh Parmar, the support physio, said the treatment was based on "controlling the pain."
"I took him for X-ray and scan and based upon the report I was more confident that he should be fine.
"It was a matter of controlling the pain and giving him some confidence. From a medical point of view, he is absolutely fine," said Parmar.
The Indian team, meanwhile, finished its block of training at the WACA ground and the visitors will now move to the Optus Stadium for match drills from Tuesday, after a scheduled rest day on Monday.
Devdutt, 3 pacers to stay back in Australia
Meanwhile, the Indian team management has decided to keep top-order batter Devdutt Padikkal in Australia as a batting back-up along with three seamers from the India A squad.
Devdutt was part of the India A squad that played two four-day matches against their Australian counterparts recently.
The left-hander, who was recently named in Karnataka's squad for the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy, had lukewarm outings during the 'A' tour, making 36, 88, 26, 1.
The three pacers are: Mukesh Kumar, Khaleel Ahmed and Navdeep Saini, who were all part of the India A squad.
Saini had also played at Sydney and Brisbane Tests during the last tour Down Under, till date his only two matches in the traditional format.
"It is more to do with the familiarity with the Australian conditions as they have played here recently," a source close to the development told PTI.
"Devdutt was highly impressive while facing Jasprit Bumrah at nets, and the management took that also into consideration," the source added.
The 24-year-old had made his Test debut against England earlier this year at Dharamsala and made a 65 while batting at No. 4.
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Rocket from Yemen strikes Tel Aviv, injuring 16, as Palestinians mourn 19 dead in Gaza
Tel Aviv, Dec 21: A rocket fired from Yemen hit an area of Tel Aviv overnight, leaving 16 people slightly injured by shattered glass, the Israeli military said Saturday, days after Israeli airstrikes hit Houthi rebels who have been launching missiles in solidarity with Palestinians.
A further 14 people sustained minor injuries as they rushed to shelters when air raid sirens sounded before the projectile hit just before 4 am Saturday, the military said.
The Houthi rebels issued a statement on the Telegram messaging app saying they had aimed a hypersonic ballistic missile at a military target, which they did not identify.
The attack comes less than two days after a series of Israeli airstrikes on Yemen's Houthi rebel-held capital, Sanaa, and port city of Hodeida killed at least nine people. The Israeli strikes were in response to a Houthi attack in which a long-range missile hit an Israeli school building. The Houthis also claimed a drone strike targeting an unspecified military target in central Israel on Thursday.
The Israeli military says the Iran-backed Houthis have launched more than 200 missiles and drones during the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza. The Houthis have also been attacking shipping in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden and say they won't stop until there is a ceasefire in Gaza.
The Israeli strikes Thursday caused “considerable damage” to the Houthi-controlled Red Sea ports “that will lead to the immediate and significant reduction in port capacity,” UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric said. The port at Hodeida has been key for food shipments into Yemen in its decade-long civil war.
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said both sides' attacks risk further escalation in the region and undermine UN mediation efforts.
