Ravichandran Ashwin joins India squad after Covid

Ashwin didn't play in the four Tests against England last summer but could be involved at Edgbaston on July 1

Ravichandran Ashwin has joined the rest of India's squad in the UK after recovering from Covid.

The off-spinner didn't travel with the remainder of the touring party last week but has now reached the group's base in Leicester, where India are facing a Leicestershire XI in a four-day warmup match.

The game is a 13-a-side fixture, with Cheteshwar Pujara, Rishabh Pant, Jasprit Bumrah and Prasidh Krishna playing for the county side. Ashwin is not named on either teamsheet.

The 35-year-old, with 442 Test wickets to his name, didn't feature in the first four Tests of the series against England last year but could well come into India's thoughts, given the dry weather so far this summer and the presence of a new captain in Rohit Sharma.

^{The fifth Test between England and India was due to be played last September (Stu Forster/Getty Images)}

On Monday, a BCCI source was quoted as telling PTI: "We are hopeful that he will recover well in time before the Test match starts on July 1. However, he might miss the practice game against Leicestershire."

The Test match at Edgbaston rounds off last summer's series, which ended abruptly on the morning of the fifth Test.

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