London
England paceman Stuart Broad was ruled out of the remainder of the test series against India on Wednesday because of a torn calf muscle.
The 35-year-old seamer sustained the injury during a warmup session on Tuesday — two days before the start of the second test at Lord’s — and an MRI scan revealed a tear.
Saqib Mahmood was called up to the squad as cover, fresh from duty in The Hundred competition, and joins James Anderson, Ollie Robinson, Mark Wood and Craig Overton as the pace options.
However, the 39-year-old Anderson was unable to join Wednesday’s net session because of a tight quadriceps muscle and is a doubt for the Lord’s test.
That could mean England lining up for a test match without both Anderson and Broad for the first time since October 2016.
They are Nos. 1 and 2 on England’s list of all-time wicket takers, with 621 (Anderson) and 524 (Broad), and have a combined total of 312 test caps.
The injury issues with Anderson and Broad are sure to invite further questions over the England and Wales Cricket Board’s schedule, which left both men short of match practice coming into the prestigious series against India.—APP
