Fletcher deserves credit for shaping Indian pace attack, says Compton
Duncan Fletcher handled the toughest transition phase in Indian cricket post the retirement of stalwarts and he should be given due credit for shaping of the pace of attack of the current team, former England opener Nick Compton. Indian pacers took 19 out of 20 wickets at the Trent Bridge where India beat England by 203 runs to peg the series at 2-1.
Compton feels that just like James Anderson and Stuart Broad were guided by Fletcher in their formative years, the current lot (Umesh Yadav, Mohammed Shami, Bhuvneshwar Kumar) has benefitted from the inputs of the respected Zimbabwean coach. “India’s pace attack hasn’t come together all of a sudden. It has taken time and it has happened one by one, as all of these bowlers took their time coming off age. India didn’t have so many pacers at once earlier, but now they do. And all (most) of them, at some point have played under Fletcher, so it is a credit to him.
“This process (of building a pace attack) started long ago and it has come together for India now,” Compton said on Sunday.
Asked what’s the difference, he finds now, Compton says: “The difference from the past is that these bowlers do not compromise on pace. Like James Anderson and Stuart Broad, they retain the ability to move the ball at pace.
“Pace. That’s the keyword. You have to consider why the likes of Anderson and Stuart Broad have been so successful in their careers. They have a thousand wickets between them in Test cricket because they move the ball at pace. And it is no coincidence that both of them started their England careers under Duncan Fletcher,” he said.
Grandson of the legendary Dennis Compton, the former international believes that the Indian team management should allow other personalities to grow in the dressing room, especially the likes of Cheteshwar Pujara and Ajinkya Rahane, who could provide a different mood or direction of thought.
“They (Pujara and Rahane) should be allowed to grow into stronger personalities in that dressing room. Now that Pujara and Rahane have scored runs, things will get easier for them. India won in Nottingham and hit upon a good team balance. There is no further reason for change. It will be interesting to see if Virat make any changes (for the fourth Test),” he said.
Compton feels that Kohli’s too much of chopping and changing does create problems for likes of Rahane and Pujara. “But in terms of selection, Virat makes too many changes. For example, it was a baffling decision to leave Pujara out of the first Test and it showed poor insight from the team management to allow that decision.
“When Virat makes so many changes as captain, it cannot always be easy for other players, like Pujara or Rahane for that matter. They do not have alpha-male personalities and such players can sometimes struggle to cope with extreme methods.”
“I don’t think England are out of this series just yet and winning three Tests on the bounce here is very tough for any visiting side,” Compton added.