The Shubman Gill-led India arrived in Sri Lanka on Tuesday evening ahead of the two-Test series, with the squad also taking along four net bowlers to help prepare for the spin-friendly conditions.
Harsh Dubey, Shivang Kumar, Tanush Kotian and Vipraj Nigam have joined the team as practice bowlers for the tour. The group includes a mix of specialist spinners and bowling all-rounders, giving the Indian batters plenty of variety during training.
Leg-spinner Vipraj Nigam, who can also contribute with the bat, recently featured for India A in the tri-series in Sri Lanka. Left-arm wrist-spinner Shivang Kumar impressed with his performances in IPL 2026 and is regarded as one of the emerging young spinners in the country.
Mumbai off-spinner Tanush Kotian has been a regular with India A and has spent time around the senior set-up, while left-arm spinning all-rounder Harsh Dubey has enjoyed an excellent run in domestic cricket over the last two Ranji Trophy seasons.
Dubey was also part of India’s squad for the one-off Test against Afghanistan in June. India will play a three-day warm-up match in Colombo from August 7 before the opening Test, which begins at the Galle International Stadium on August 15.
The second and final Test will be played at the Sinhalese Sports Club in Colombo from August 23 to 27. The series is part of the ICC World Test Championship 2025-27 cycle.
The visitors, however, have been hit by a series of injury setbacks. Pace spearhead Jasprit Bumrah has been ruled out after failing to recover from the left knee injury he sustained during the ODI series against England. The fast bowler underwent rehabilitation at the BCCI’s Centre of Excellence but was not cleared to return.
Jammu and Kashmir pacer Auqib Nabi has replaced Bumrah in the squad. The uncapped seamer earned his maiden India call-up after an outstanding domestic season in which he picked up 60 wickets and played a key role in Jammu and Kashmir’s maiden Ranji Trophy title.
India are also without Harshit Rana (hamstring), Nitish Kumar Reddy (quadriceps) and Washington Sundar (hamstring), all of whom have been ruled out through injury. Sai
Sudharsan, meanwhile, is still awaiting fitness clearance before he can join the squad.
The 24-year-old Sudharsan, who is currently undergoing rehabilitation for a minor niggle, is expected to link up with the squad well before the first Test, starting August 15.
According to multiple reports, the left-handed batter is expected to travel to the Island nation this weekend, which effectively rules him out of the warm-up match (from August 7) in the build-up to the opening Test. The Tamil Nadu and Gujarat batter has featured in seven Tests and scored 383 runs at an average of 39 with three half centuries.