IND vs ENG: Big blow to England, Harry Brook out of five-match test series due to personal reasons

England has suffered a major setback just four days before the start of the five-match Test series against India. England team's star batsman Harry Brook is out of the series due to personal reasons. The England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) has said that right-handed batsman Harry Brook will not join England's Test tour of India with immediate effect due to personal reasons.

It added that Brook, who was in England's preparation camp for the India tour in Abu Dhabi, would not travel to India and a replacement player would be named in due course. England has to reach Hyderabad on Sunday before the first Test starting on January 25.

The ECB said, 'Harry Brook is ready to return home from the England men's Test team's tour of India with immediate effect due to personal reasons. He will not be travelling to India, the Brooks family respectfully requests privacy during this time. In light of this, the ECB and the family request the media and the public to respect their wish for privacy and refrain from intruding into their personal space.'

The ECB said in its statement that the England selectors will confirm a replacement player for the tour in due course. Brook has been one of the shining stars for England while playing Test cricket for the last one and a half years. His average in 12 Test matches is 62.16, in which he has scored 1181 runs at a strike rate of 91.76, including four centuries and seven fifties.

He had a breakout moment in England's tour of Pakistan in December 2022, where he was named Player of the Series for scoring 468 runs in five innings at an average of 93.60 and scoring three centuries, including a brilliant 153. The England selectors may look at the batsmen of the England Lions team, who are currently in Ahmedabad for the series against India 'A', to see who could be a suitable replacement for Brook.

Captain Josh Bohannon, who scored a century against India A last week, James Reeve and Dan Mousley are the other batting options in the middle order. In the main Test team, Jonny Bairstow and Ben Foakes are middle-order batsmen who are also wicketkeepers. After the first match in Hyderabad on January 25, India and England will play other matches of the series in Visakhapatnam (February 2-6), Rajkot (February 15-19), Ranchi (February 23-27) and Dharamshala (March 7-11).