ENGLAND SERIES ON THE LINE AS INDIA BRACE FOR ANOTHER SWING TEST
Tourists prepare Rishabh Pant for debut at Nottingham as England eye unassailable 30 lead
NOTTINGHAM: India go into the third Test against England at Trent Bridge starting on Saturday with odds stacked against them. To what extent, can be gauged from a simple statistic.
Only one team in Test history has come back from losing the first two Tests to win a fivematch series -- Don Bradman’s 1936-37 Ashes side, though it was playing at home. India’s best effort away from home till date has been rallying after losing the first Test to win the next two, in the 2015 series in Sri Lanka.
However, the Indian camp will be thinking more of survival. India arrived in England with high hopes that the world No 1 team would embark on a new era, and dominate major rivals in their den. Demoralised after losing two Tests, the visitors must put up a fight. Their worries are on three fronts — skipper Virat Kohli’s back trouble suffered at Lord’s, the weather (forecast is for rain on Sunday and Wednesday, the last day) and how the batsmen would fare against the relentless swing bowling of England.
POOR RECORD
India’s batsmen in the top five slots barring Kohli – Murali Vijay, KL Rahul, Cheteshwar Pujara and Ajinkya Rahane – have not scored a fifty across four innings each in this series. Shikhar Dhawan failed in the first Test and was dropped.
Kohli and coach Ravi Shastri have urged batsmen to show clarity and belief but batsmen seem to be suffering from a huge loss of confidence. A defeat here will make it three-in-a-row in England for India, having lost in 2011 and 2014. Losing tamely will undermine Kohli’s leadership despite a great run with the bat.
A pitch with a tinge of grass and Trent Bridge’s history of helping seam bowlers won’t delight Indian batsmen who are already under siege. England spearhead James Anderson, who has 60 wickets at an average of 18.95 at the venue, was thoroughly preparing for the battle on Thursday afternoon.
STOKES IN SQUAD
The master of swing was bowling on a pitch at the edge of the square with all-rounder Ben Stokes. He first got the ball to move away from one end and then switched to the pavilion end, bowling incoming deliveries, all precise as ever. Stokes has been named in the squad in place of Sam Curran after he was acquitted of affray on Tuesday by a Bristol court.
The record of making changes under Kohli’s captaincy is set to continue. Rishabh Pant is almost certain to make his Test debut, replacing Dinesh Karthik. Shikhar Dhawan had a long batting stint on Thursday and it remains to be seen whether the opener, dropped at Lord’s, is recalled and whether India play six batsmen.
Chinaman bowler Kuldeep Yadav is likely to sit out after Kohli and Shastri admitted bungling selection at Lord’s. Umesh Yadav could be recalled or Jasprit Bumrah, fit after suffering a left thumb fracture, could be picked to play his fourth Test.