Know Akash Deep: The Bengal Pacer Who Replaced Avesh Khan For England Tests
Rookie pacer Akash Deep hogged the limelight when India announced their squad for the last three Test matches against England.
- NDTV Sports Desk
- Updated: February 10, 2024 05:58 PM IST
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Rookie pacer Akash Deep hogged the limelight when India announced their squad for the last three Test matches against England. Ahead of the five-game series, the BCCI announced the squad only for the first two Tests. After the end of the second game, the board named the players for the remaining matches and Akash Deep is the new name added to the list of players. It is a maiden Test call-up for the right-arm pacer, who also bats right-handed. Bowling all-rounder Akash, who hails from Bihar but plays domestic cricket for Bengal, replaced another pacer Avesh Khan in the India squad.
Akash Deep was born on December 15, 1996, in Dehri, Bihar. He lacked encouragement from his father at the start of his career, but his supportive uncle helped him make a switch from Bihar to Bengal, from where he kicked off his First-Class cricket journey. He has played 29 First-Class matches and scalped 103 wickets while also scoring 418 runs with a highest score of 53 not out.
The bowling all-rounder plays for Royal Challengers Banglalore in Indian Premier League. The franchise had picked him for Rs 20 lakh in 2022. Playing 7 matches for the side, Akash has picked 6 wickets.
Akash Deep was part of the India 'A' squad in the recent unofficial multiple-day series against England Lions. The pacer starred with a total of 13 wickets to his name, which would definitely have played a big role in the selectors considering him for the senior men's cricket team. He replaced Avesh Khan as the latter has been released to play Ranji Trophy.
India squad for last 3 England Tests: Rohit Sharma (C), Jasprit Bumrah (VC), Yashasvi Jaiswal, Shubman Gill, KL Rahul*, Rajat Patidar, Sarfaraz Khan, Dhruv Jurel (WK), KS Bharat (WK), R Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja*, Axar Patel, Washington Sundar, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohd. Siraj, Mukesh Kumar, Akash Deep
"The participation of Ravindra Jadeja and KL Rahul is subject to fitness clearance from the BCCI medical team," said BCCI in its release on Saturday.