What exactly happened in Birmingham that made the police stop Team India from even stepping out of their hotel rooms?
Just as Shubman Gill and Co. wrapped up their practice session and returned to the hotel, the mood shifted from game mode to lockdown real quick due to a security threat. The players were asked not to venture out.
Turns out, the local police found an unattended parcel nearby and cordoned off Centenary Square because of the suspicious package in the area. After a thorough check, though, the situation de-escalated when the cordon was lifted and no harm was reported following an inquiry into the package.
Thankfully, a team spokesperson confirmed that 'everything was fine' and the mood resumed to Test match mode.
Apart from this, Shubman Gill hosted the entire team for a dinner ahead of the 2nd Test as part of the team bonding exercise. This was said to be a wonderful initiative, given the number of new players in the squad. Interestingly, it was an old tradition that was missing during the team's tour of Australia in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy. But Gill and Gautam Gambhir decided to bring it back.
India is 1-0 down in the 5-match Test series and is expected to make a number of changes for the Birmingham Test. Jasprit Bumrah is likely to miss the Test due to his workload management, while Akash Deep is the frontrunner to replace him. Arshdeep Singh might also be considered for selection.
Kuldeep Yadav's name is also in the mix, but reportedly, he might have to wait for his chance. The team management is keen on adding all-rounders to the playing XI, which makes Nitish Kumar Reddy and Washington Sundar's inclusion a possibility.
Remember, India last won a Test series in England in 2007, and another slip-up in Birmingham would mean that they would have to win all 3 Tests in order to win their first Test series in England in 18 years.
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