The Bumrah dilemma: Do India play Washington Sundar or Kuldeep Yadav? A look at India's probable playing XI for Edgbaston Test?

With a day to go for the second Test at Edgbaston, India have a few selection puzzles to decode and none of them seem very straightforward. For a side that is 0-1 down in foreign conditions, making bold calls may not be as easy as it seems but captain Shubman Gill and head coach Gautam Gambhir will need clarity if they harbour hopes of a fightback.

The primary question will obviously be around the availability of Jasprit Bumrah. The pace ace bowled full steam in the nets on Saturday (June 28) but has since mostly been on the sidelines preserving his energy. Since then, the 31-year-old has had the odd burst of practice and looked in peak shape throughout, showing little signs of the wear and tear he experienced at Headingley. Bumrah's fitness for this game is not a concern - he is more than ready - but India have to ponder over a few factors here.

Firstly, the medical staff's diktat of not playing Bumrah in successive Tests is a point to consider, although there has been a week's gap between Headingley and Edgbaston. Supposing he does play, it would certainly mean a no-show for the pacer in the Lord's Test that starts just three days after the second Test ends. Historically, Lord's has been a bogey ground for England, more so in recent years and the venue should suit pacers a lot more than Edgbaston where Bumrah might have to toil a lot more.

The other point to note is the weather forecast for the Edgbaston Test. While forecasts in the UK are as unpredictable as it gets, scattered showers are predicted across the match, notably on the first, third and fifth days. Early signs suggest a good batting pitch even with the grass cover on it. There is evident dryness and the patchy grass could make it a batter's ally and if anything, spin could play a more prominent part.

In such a scenario, would India be better off resting Bumrah for this fixture and then unleashing him at Lord's and Manchester back-to-back? It is a delicate scenario as one more defeat would make the chances of a comeback in the series near impossible for Gill's men. Assistant coach Ryan ten Doeschae in the press conference also stated that the Bumrah decision would be taken very close to the toss on match day.

"Bumrah is ready to play," said ten Doeschate.

"It's how we manage these four Tests. So, if we feel like there's value in playing him in this Test, we'll make that call at the very last minute. I'm talking about weather, how the pitch is going to play, are we better off holding him back for Lord's and maybe Manchester or The Oval? So it's all those factors, but you've seen him train yesterday, he trained a little bit today. It's not like he's not fit to play. It's just trying to fit those puzzle pieces to get the most out of what we know we do have from him."

If Bumrah does sit out, all signs point towards a possible Test debut for Arshdeep Singh who also had an extensive session in the nets. While Lord's would be a better venue to play him considering the venue's prejudice for left-arm pacers, his variety would be of great help to an Indian attack that is looking monotonous apart from Bumrah.

Apart from the Bumrah puzzle, India's other selection dilemma will be surrounding the composition of their bowling attack. They played just a solitary spinner at Headingley and Ravindra Jadeja had an underwhelming time, particularly on the final day when there were a few footmarks on the pitch to work with. Edgbaston could potentially support spin a lot more and with Jadeja's all-round credentials likely to help retain his spot, do India opt for a second spinner? If so, whom do they go for?

Washington Sundar was intensely seen practising in the nets, both with the bat and with the ball, indicating a strong possibility of his inclusion in the XI. The off-spinner isn't an attacking option but could offer control and that is something India desperately lacked in Leeds. Sundar also offers strong batting ability and India would want to address their batting depth after the collapses in both innings of the first Test.

Nitish Reddy and Kuldeep Yadav are the other options that India have in their ranks. If they play Reddy for Shardul Thakur, it would basically mean a batting all-rounder at no.8 but this could put the team combination in a soup. India would then ideally need to play Kuldeep for one of three frontline seamers as otherwise, the bowling attack could look very toothless. A bolder approach would be to pick Kuldeep for Thakur and hope that the specialist batters do the job.

The bolder move, however, isn't as easy a route to take for this young side. Especially as no.9, 10 and 11 have negligible ability with the bat. It greatly reduces the chances of India trimming their batting depth any further.

This is an assignment where criticism is inevitable for every small wrong step and that is why the Gill-Gambhir duo have to tread carefully before making selection calls. In the batting department, no changes are expected which means that Sai Sudharsan and Karun Nair will both get another opportunity to redeem themselves. The duo will hope to cash in on what could be better batting conditions in Birmingham.

Probable XI:

KL Rahul, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Sai Sudharsan, Shubman Gill(c), Rishabh Pant (wk), Karun Nair, Ravindra Jadeja, Washington Sundar, Mohammed Siraj, Prasidh Krishna, Arshdeep Singh/Jasprit Bumrah

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