Axar ruled out of remaining T20Is against SA; Shahbaz Ahmed included in squad

New Delhi, Dec 15 (PTI) India all-rounder Axar Patel was on Monday ruled out of the remaining two T20 Internationals against South Africa due to illness with the BCCI's selection committee naming Shahbaz Ahmed as his replacement.

Axar had also missed the third T20I in Dharamsala on Sunday with wrist spinner Kuldeep Yadav being included in the playing XI.

India went on to defeat South Africa by seven wickets in a low-scoring match to take a 2-1 lead in the five-match series.

The last two games of the five-match series will be played in Lucknow and Ahmedabad on Wednesday and Friday respectively.

"Team India allrounder, Axar Patel has been ruled out of the remaining two IDFC First Bank T20Is against South Africa due to illness," said a statement from BCCI secretary Devajit Saikia.

"However, he is with the team in Lucknow where he will be further medically assessed. The Men’s Selection Committee has named Shahbaz Ahmed as his replacement for the T20Is in Lucknow and Ahmedabad," the statement added.

The 31-year-old Shahbaz Ahmed has played two T20Is and three ODIs, taking a total of five wickets. He has come into the side on the back of some promising performances in Ranji and Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy games this season.

India’s updated squad for last two T20Is: Suryakumar Yadav (c), Shubman Gill (vc), Abhishek Sharma, Tilak Varma, Hardik Pandya, Shivam Dube, Jitesh Sharma (WK), Sanju Samson (WK), Jasprit Bumrah, Varun Chakaravarthy, Arshdeep Singh, Kuldeep Yadav, Harshit Rana, Washington Sundar, Shahbaz Ahmed. PTI AM AM PDS PDS