The Indian cricket team has suffered a blow ahead of the IND vs SA ODI series. With the 3-match series starting on December 17 in Johannesburg, all-rounder Deepak Chahar has made himself unavailable. For those who are unaware, Chahar’s father has been in critical condition for the last couple of weeks, and reports of him deciding not to travel to South Africa had surfaced. With the series on the line, the BCCI has named Akash Deep as his replacement.
Who is Akash Deep?
The 27-year-old all-rounder plays for Bengal in domestic cricket. Since starting his journey in 2019, Akash Deep has played over 80 matches for Bengal in all three formats (List A, First Class, and T20).
With over 170 wickets and 500 runs to his name for Bengal, the bowling all-rounder can be seen as a like-for-like replacement for Deepak Chahar.
Akash Deep List A and IPL records
In 28 List A matches, Akash Deep has 42 wickets at 24.5, striking in every 30.4 balls while giving away 4.82 runs an over. As a proficient lower-order hitter, the all-rounder has a high 116.66 strike in domestic ODIs but averages just 12.72 in 16 innings.
Apart from a great domestic record, the right-hander has also played in the Indian Premier League (IPL). In his short IPL career, Akash has 6 wickets to his name and a batting strike rate of 170 in 7 matches.
India’s updated ODI squad: Ruturaj Gaikwad, Sai Sudharsan, Tilak Varma, Rajat Patidar, Rinku Singh, Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul (c & wk), Sanju Samson (wk), Axar Patel, Washington Sundar, Kuldeep Yadav, Yuzvendra Chahal, Mukesh Kumar, Avesh Khan, Arshdeep Singh, Akash Deep.
