India hope to regain lead, pride
With Root on a high, India will have to lift themselves to wrest control of the series in the Oval Test
MUMBAI: Going by the fluctuating battle so far this series, a treat is in store at the Oval. England stormed back at Headingley to neutralise the edge India gained at Lord’s, leaving the series 1-1 with two Tests to go. The hosts can claim psychological advantage after their innings win but the contests have been such that one bad session can make the difference. Inside the first two sessions of the third Test, India lost the advantage they earned with the Lord’s victory. They never recovered after, being dismissed for 78. In the second innings, their last eight wickets fell for 63 runs. Preventing such collapses will be the main challenge.
In English conditions, the importance of a good start can’t be overstated. It has been the difference in the last two contests. India won at Lord’s on the back of a 126-run opening partnership between Rohit Sharma and KL Rahul. At Headingley, after their bowlers blew India’s batting away, England openers Rory Burns and Haseeb Hameed laid the foundation for their total of 432 by raising 136 runs.
The concern for India has been a stuttering middle-order. Despite a half-century at Lord’s, Ajinkya Rahane continues to struggle. It has been followed by scores of 18 and 10. He averages 19. Man-for-man India started this series as favourites. The main reason England are on the ascendancy is how well they have bowled to Virat Kohli. He scored his first half-century of the series in the last innings, but has been outperformed by his opposite number Joe Root. Kohli aggregates 124 at an average of 24.80. His last century was in Nov 2019, against Bangladesh.
Kohli skipping the pre-match captain’s press conference seems to indicate he feels some pressure. Root said they will continue to apply pressure on the India No. 4. “Virat is world class, that’s why the credit has to go to our bowlers; they have been able to keep a world class player quiet. It is something we have to continue to do if we want to win this series. Till now we have found ways to get him out, we will have to find ways to keep up the pressure on him.”
Cheteshwar Pujara showed the first real signs of finding his touch in a fluent 91. For India to win though, in the absence of big runs from Kohli, he needs to play the role he performed in the 2018 series win in Australia.
Rishabh Pant is discovering the tactics that worked in Australia and India are unlikely to work in England. In choosing their five-bowler combination,
India had banked heavily on sizeable contributions from Pant. He averages 17.40 with a total of 87 runs after five innings. He is attacking too early. Wild charges down the wicket are high risk when the ball is doing a lot. Getting behind the ball and playing the shots will be more productive. However, he returns to a venue where he scored his first hundred in 2018.
Only Rohit has shown consistent form. Even KL Rahul, Manof-the-Match at Lord’s, failed at Headingley.
Spin factor
For various reasons, India could see a change in combination. The Oval pitch is expected to play flatter and England’s new vice-captain and off-spinner Moeen Ali said it would spin later in the game. It means R Ashwin could get his first game of the series. If India stick to five bowlers, there’s merit in playing two spinners and three pacers. Bowling coach Bharat Arun said on Wednesday that Ravindra Jadeja and Ashwin could team up. “It depends on the conditions. Ashwin is no doubt the best bowler we have, it is unfortunate he has not played so far but if there is an opportunity and we feel he fits into the scheme of things then they will be bowling in tandem.
“History suggests the Oval aids spin, but we are aware of how the Englishmen are wary of Ashwin’s ability if there is a little assistance from the track. So, we will wait to have a look in the morning.”
If they decide to have the cushion of an extra batsman, Hanuma Vihari can come in.
Changes though are expected in the pace attack. Ishant Sharma looked jaded in the third Test. India has added Prasidh Krishna to the squad, and with Shardul Thakur and Umesh Yadav, he will be an option.
The challenge will be to stop Root. He is in the form of his life, with six Test centuries this year—four of them against India. He has 1,398 runs, which is only 390 behind Mohammad Yousuf’s Test record of 1,788 runs for a calendar year. Root has a maximum of 10 more innings available. The England captain’s record at the Oval against India is two centuries in two Tests.
Robinson threat
The hosts have received a pace boost with Chris Woakes and Mark Wood cleared for selection. Without discounting James Anderson’s brilliance, the bowler India are more wary of is Ollie Robinson. In the absence of first-choice Jofra Archer and Stuart Broad, he has grown into his role as a strike bowler with two five-wicket hauls. Equally importantly, he is taking the pressure off Anderson with his solid work-rate. With boundless stamina, he hurts the opposition deep into the innings as he keeps at the batsmen with relentless accuracy. He has shown the skill to move the ball in both directions. At Leeds, he took out Pujara leg before shouldering arms during a spell of 5/65 in the second innings.
England’s batting has fallen into place with the promotion of Haseeb Hameed as opener. Dawid Malan also came in and scored a fluent 70. India were left with too much ground to cover after the early collapse.
Root though is wary of an Indian backlash. “A world class side like India led by Virat, I expect nothing less than a response. We would be naive to think otherwise. That’s why it is important we don’t get comfortable. We don’t think we have achieved anything so far, we have just got ourselves at level terms. We have to look now to work even harder. If we find ourselves ahead of the game at any stage we get ruthless and really drive that winning position home,” he said.