Injured Akash Deep ruled out of Manchester Test

India captain Shubman Gill has confirmed that Akash Deep has not returned to full fitness in time for the fourth Test against England at Old Trafford. He sustained a groin injury during the Lord's Test, bowled into Morne Morkel's mitt two days before the Test, but not in the nets. His replacement will be either Anshul Kamboj or Prasidh Krishna.

India had already confirmed this will be the third of three promised Tests that Jasprit Bumrah plays in this series. That leaves India with a call to make on the final morning between Prasidh, who is taller and can bring extra bounce into play but has gone at an average of 55.16 and economy of 5.33, and the uncapped Kamboj, who is closer to a like-for-like replacement for Akash in being able to extract seam movement.

Gill said Kamboj was close to making his debut, but didn't rule out Prasidh either. Prasidh was asked to move away from his good length and bowl short on flat decks in the first two Tests. "He [Kamboj] is very close to making his debut," Gill said. "We're going to see tomorrow between him and Prasidh as to who's going to make it to the XI."

Kamboj's batting could also be a factor. He averages 16.20 with the bat in first-class cricket, and he is able to strike the ball hard. He has hit 22 sixes in 24 matches, striking at 73.08 per 100 balls. Prasidh has scored just 198 first-class runs at 8.6 per dismissal.

Gill repeated that he had full faith in anyone from the squad making it to the final XI. "The kind of skillset that he brings to the table is exactly what we want in this team and he's there because we believe that he can win us the match," Gill said of Kamboj. "Even in the second Test match, when Akash Deep was brought in, a lot of people had questions why he's been brought in, but it's mainly the belief that we have within our squad that any player that comes in the team is able to or can win matches for us."

The third fast bowler is not the only decision India need to make. They have lost their fourth quick from the last two matches - Nitish Kumar Reddy - to a knee injury. Unlike Akash, whom they trust to be available for The Oval, Reddy has been ruled out of the series. India look set to replace him with a specialist batter in B Sai Sudharsan, leaving them room to replace Washington Sundar with Shardul Thakur should the conditions demand that.

Two days out, the conditions in question didn't look as seam-friendly as you'd expect in rain-hit Manchester, but Gill said another day of drizzle and the consequent covering of the pitch might result in help for seam bowling.

"When I saw the wicket yesterday, it didn't look that damp," Gill said. "But obviously now having to look at the weather, I don't think there is much chance for the wicket to dry that moisture out. So I think there will be a little bit more for the bowlers. And generally at this venue, it's a little bit quicker than the other venues we have seen. There's a bit more pace and bounce."

It will be interesting to see where Karun Nair bats if Sudharsan does come back in. In the first Test, when both played, Sudharsan batted at No. 3 and Nair at 6. Nair has had starts after that but has not reached a fifty in three Tests. Gill backed Nair to come good.

"We think Karun is batting well," Gill said. "First match, he didn't really play at this number. It's difficult when a player is making comeback in a series like this, but I don't think there's been any issue with this batting. I think he's been batting well. Sometimes it's also about getting that click. Once you're able to make your fifty, then you're able to get back into your zone and get some big runs. Unfortunately that hasn't happened for him so far, but we are hopeful that he will be able to turn it around."

Gill confirmed that Rishabh Pant was good to keep wicket after a finger injury kept him away from keeping at Lord's.

1 KL Rahul, 2 Yashasvi Jaiswal, 3 Karun Nair, 4 Shubman Gill (capt.), 5 Rishabh Pant (vc & wk), 6 B Sai Sudharsan, 7 Ravindra Jadeja, 8 Washington Sundar/Shardul Thakur, 9 Anshul Kamboj/Prasidh Krishna, 10 Jasprit Bumrah, 11 Mohammed Siraj