Rotating pacers helps manage workload: Umesh
Kohli’s side will continue to experiment while Australia look to win again and find momentum ahead of the Ashes NAGPUR: NAGPUR: Slow wicket, no pace and bounce. It’s very hard for the fast bowlers to come to oneday cricket with the same intensity.
Four years back when India took on Australia in the sixth ODI of the seven-match series at the Vidarbha Cricket Association (VCA) Stadium here in Jamtha, the hosts had an arduous task of pulling the series back on level terms. They did manage to do so before going on to clinch the decider at Bangalore.
This time, however, the series had already been decided going into the fourth game in Bangalore. But although India hold an unassailable 3-1 lead, the final match on Sunday can’t be dismissed as a dead rubber. A loss would not just raise questions about Virat Kohli’s rotational policy but hurt India’s morale, having lost the previous game.
Kuldeep Yadav, Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Jasprit Bumrah had made way for Axar Patel, Umesh Yadav and Mohammed Shami in the fourth ODI.
But the changes backfired as Australia piled up 334. However, the skipper is likely to continue experimenting with the playing eleven and test the bench strength.
KL Rahul might also get a nod if Kohli sticks to his rotation plans as the Karnataka batsman is yet to feature in the series.
While Hardik Pandya, MS Dhoni and Kedar Jadhav have played to potential, scoring at least one half-century in the series, Pandey’s performance has been unsteady.
India fast bowler Umesh Yadav on Saturday lauded skipper Virat Kohli’s rotation policy for fast bowlers, stating that using a select group of pacers for Tests and limited-over format helps them stay fresh throughout the year.
“I think it’s good for the fast bowlers. If you continuously play Test cricket, it’s a lot of load for a fast bowler. Playing in sub-continental conditions is very tough. Slow wicket, no pace and bounce. It’s very hard for the fast bowlers to come to one-day cricket with the same intensity,” Umesh said while addressing the media a day ahead of the fifth ODI between India and Australia. “When you have played a long season, recovery is very crucial. You can play a lot of matches but your fitness can take a hit. There are more chances of injuries and breakdowns. I think the management is doing a good job in balancing our workload.”
On a personal front, however, Umesh admitted that being a senior player, he must put in that extra bit to continue playing across all three formats. Umesh, who featured in the series for the first time in the last ODI, picked up four wickets but leaked 71 runs, including 24 in his last two overs.
“I know we gave 15-20 runs extra, we should have controlled that. But still, (Mohd) Shami and I just played our first game after a long (time), but we are senior bowlers and have to take the responsibility for the same,” said Yadav, who will be playing on his home ground.
He seems to have cemented his spot in the five-day format though having featured in 15 of the last 16 Tests have India played at home and away.
Asked if it was a conscious decision to focus on a particular format, Umesh said, “It depends… If you have a lot of Tests scheduled throughout the year, you’ll have to take a call (about your preferred format). But you can’t say I want to play only Tests, because if you don’t have many Tests scheduled in a year you won’t have much to do for the rest of the year. The body, On the rotation policy
If you have a lot of Tests scheduled through the year, you’ll have to take a call, But you can’t say I want to play only Tests.
On his preferred format
It feels good to play Test cricket because you have time. You have various situations and I like those challenges.
On the challenge of Tests too, needs match practice to get better.”
He, however, stated he relishes the challenge of the longer format more given that it allows him time to settle down and work on his plans.
“It feels good to play Test cricket because you have time. You have various situations. I like those challenges. I like the fact that pitches are different and want to take wickets on various surfaces. I’m more than happy to play Test cricket.
“If I play both formats, I know it will be good for me. I’m in an age where the more cricket I play, it’s good for me. I shouldn’t regret later on that I focused only on one format. I would love to play all formats.”