Problems at the top hurt India
FAILING TO FIRE Openers have failed to see off the new ball in South Africa and England, putting pressure on middleorder
averages 23.7.
KL Rahul has fared the worst. In nine innings as opener, he has scored 110 runs at an average of just over 12. He has played in six of the Tests. He opened in both innings in four Tests, opened and came in at No 3 in the Johannesburg Test, and at No 3 in the Edgbaston Test. In three innings at No 3, he has scored just 33 at 11 apiece.
It might be difficult for Vijay to make a comeback at 34, while Shikhar Dhawan’s lack of technique against pace and seam movement has been exposed repeatedly.
RAHUL’S WOES
Rahul scored a century in Australia – India’s next destination – in 2014-15. But his confidence is in tatters after poor technique against in-coming deliveries was brutally exposed by James Series InSA England TOTAL M 3 4 7
Batsman M S Dhawan 4 Vijay 5 Rahul 5 Patel 1 TOTAL 7 Runs 109 230 339
Runs 190 128 110
16 444 Anderson, Stuart Broad and other England seamers. At 26, he may be part of India’s future plans, but the Karnataka batsman who till the 2016-17 season made almost every start count, will be lucky to play in the final Test starting at the Oval on Friday.
In the current series, India openers’ poor run has put pressure on the rest. They have contributed 46 and 19 (Edgbaston), AVG 18.16 28.75 24.21
AVG 23.75 12.8 12.22 16 15.85 H.P 30 60 60
H.S 44 46 36 16 46 100 In
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- 8 and 10 (Lord’s), 58 and 80 (Trent Bridge) and 42 and 17 (Southampton). Thus it comes as no surprise that India built on the good start in the third Test to win by 203 runs. With the series gone, the Indian team management could throw Prithvi Shaw -- U-19 World Cup-winning skipper – into the deep end at Oval and ask the talented 18-year-old to swim and get India off the blocks better.