India have added pacer T Natarajan to the ODI squad after Navdeep Saini was ruled out of the 1st ODI match against Australia, the BCCI announced in a statement on November 26 midnight. Saini, who was named in the original ODI squad, complained of back spasm hours prior to the first ODI, which will take place on November 27 (Friday). Natarajan was added to the squad as a back-up option. The Indian cricket board also gave updates on the fitness of Rohit Sharma and Ishant Sharma in the late-night statement. Virat Kohli Opens Up on Decision to Come Home Mid-Way Through Australia Series, Reveals Reason Behind Making the Call (Watch Video).

Ishant, who was ruled of IPL 2020 with a side strain injury, has now been ruled out of the upcoming four-match Test series against Australia while Rohit is currently undergoing rehabilitation at the National Cricket Academy (NCA) in Bengaluru and will be assessed on December 11. Rohit has already been ruled out of the first two Test matches and could at most play the final two Tests.

IND vs AUS 2020-21: There Has Been Lack of Clarity on Rohit Sharma's Injury Status, Says Skipper Virat Kohli.

“Ishant has recovered completely from his side strain injury sustained during IPL 2020 in the U.A.E. While he’s building up his workload in order to achieve Test match fitness, Mr Ishant Sharma has been ruled out of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy,” said the statement from BCCI.

India Add T Natarajan to ODI Squad, Ishant Sharma Ruled Out

It also informed Rohit had to travel back to Mumbai after the IPL to attend to his ailing father before travelling to NCA to recuperate from his injury. “He is presently undergoing rehabilitation at the NCA. Mr Rohit Sharma’s next assessment will be conducted on December 11th following which the BCCI will have clarity on his participation in the upcoming Border-Gavaskar Trophy in Australia,” the statement said.

“Mr Rohit Sharma had to come back to Mumbai after the IPL to attend his ailing father. His father is now recuperating well and that has allowed him to travel to the NCA and start his rehabilitation,” it added.

On T Natarajan’s late addition to the ODI squad, BCCI said: “The All-India Senior Selection Committee has added T Natarajan to India’s squad for the three-match ODI series against Australia starting Friday. Navdeep Saini complained of back spasm and Natarajan has been added as a back-up.”

India are set to play Australia in the first ODI of a three-match series on November 27 (Friday). The game will be India’s first international fixture since March when they toured New Zealand. Since then coronavirus pandemic had halted sports. India will be playing their first game after eight months. The first ODI will be played at the Sydney Cricket Ground and it is set to begin on 09:10 am IST.

India’s final ODI squad: Virat Kohli (C), Shikhar Dhawan, Shubman Gill, KL Rahul (WK), Sanju Samson (WK), Shreyas Iyer, Manish Pandey, Hardik Pandya, Mayank Agarwal, Ravindra Jadeja, Yuzvendra Chahal, Kuldeep Yadav, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Shami, Navdeep Saini, Shardul Thakur, T Natarajan.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Nov 27, 2020 01:02 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).