Time for pacers to hit right notes
In absence of Bhuvi and Bumrah, Umesh can be the gamechanger
BIRMINGHAM : India’s build-up to the Test series in England has been dominated by talk about toporder batsmen and spinners, but as the teams gear up for the first game under a grey Birmingham sky, pace could be the key to unlock a shaky home team.
Skipper Virat Kohli sees 2018 as a great opportunity to show India can hold their own away from home and coach Ravi Shastri has said there would be no let-up in the hunt for victory, even if results don’t always come.
India’s pace bowlers have a great opportunity to deliver on the fiery quotient. In South Africa early this year, India bowled out the hosts in each of the three Tests as Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Shami and Bhuvneshwar Kumar shared 39 wickets.
As Bumrah nurses a thumb injury and Bhuvneshwar a back stress, India have the depth in pace to hurt England’s inconsistent batsman. The big question India must address is whether to play two spinners, and include young Chinaman bowler Kuldeep Yadav with off-spinner R Ashwin, or play three pacers in Umesh Yadav, Ishant Sharma and Mohammed Shami to go with all-rounder Hardik Pandya.
Kuldeep has played only two Tests but has the X-factor as a wrist spinner, always a wickettaking option, and can trouble an England that relies on Alastair Cook and skipper Joe Root.
Rain in Birmingham at the weekend and an overcast sky on Monday morning with showers forecast for Tuesday too makes it tricky and bowling focus could also address balance in batting.
Ashwin, if picked, is expected to bat at No 8. Although he flopped in 2014, his experience could be vital if the pitch wears out faster due to a dry English summer until this weekend.
Umesh looked the sharpest in the warm-up against Essex, taking four wickets. He bowled with pace, extracted late movement and ball skidded off the pitch too.
Having played 12 of the 13 matches during India’s home swing in 2016-17 and done well, he didn’t get a game in South Africa. This five-match series will be seen as a great opportunity for Umesh to pair up with Ishant.
Of his 37 Tests, he has played 15 away, seven of them in Australia where he has a decent record. Letting him loose here could be a game-changer if he bowls with discipline.
Ishant will be expected to deliver. On India’s
2014 tour, he captured seven wickets in the second innings to hand the visitors a famous win at Lord’s. After his stint with Sussex, he was solid in the Essex game, taking three wickets.
Shami, India’s most successful bowler in South Africa with 15 scalps, was rusty. He has had little match practice since that big series, and missed most of IPL games due to a family dispute. His dodgy knee too needs to be managed, but is the most skilful among the pacers.
With England looking to rotate James Anderson and Stuart Broad to manage workload, and Bumrah and Bhuvneshwar expected to play later on, it could be time to show India have come of age in pace department.