There are questions galore for India ahead of the second Test at Edgbaston, starting today, and expectedly almost all of them are about bowlers and bowling combinations.
The biggest question for India is whether to risk playing Jasprit Bumrah or save their most precious -- and injury-prone -- bowler for later Tests. If he sits out, who will replace him? Who else will be replaced, given the other three pacers were ineffective and expensive, and by whom? Will they stick with a lone spinner or add a second, considering the hot weather and a dry Birmingham pitch?
A five-Test series, especially away from home, is challenging. Even more so when the home side has edged ahead 1-0 after a thrilling chase on a fifth-day pitch. As a result, while the triumphant England are confident enough to go into the second Test unchanged, defeated India are still pondering over the choices they need to make.
And the most important decision they have to make is about Bumrah’s workload. Even before India landed in England, it was already decided that he will play on three of the five Tests. India are being cautious about his workload as he could not take the load of five Tests in a row in Australia and suffered a stress fracture in his back that kept him away from cricket for a couple of months, missing the Champions Trophy.
“Bumrah is definitely available [for selection]. We are just going to see how to manage his workload in the upcoming Test matches,” captain Shubman Gill said. “We just thought we would take a final look once we come to the ground and see what kind of combination that we want to go with tomorrow.”
Bumrah is a maverick. His presence lifts the potential of the playing XI several notches up. The obsessiveness with which his availability for the second Test has been discussed over the last few days shows how valuable he is.
However, no matter what anybody likes to believe and tell others, one player doesn’t win you a Test match. Even if that player is Bumrah. In the last five overseas Tests, in all of which Bumrah played and took 29 wickets, including three 5-fors, India lost four and drew one.
Unless India take care of other factors that contributed to their loss, they will find it difficult to make a comeback in the series. Top of the list is their catching abilities, but also the negligible contribution from the lower-order – just 5 in first innings and 4 in second by India’s No. 8 to 11. In contrast, England’s lower order added 72 in the first innings.
India’s plan to shore up their batting by favouring Shardul Thakur over better bowlers like Akash Deep and Arshdeep Singh backfired badly. Thakur scored just 5 runs in two innings and was trusted to bowl only 16 of the 160 overs India bowled in the match — all other bowlers bowled 40-plus overs each.
Other bowlers struggled too. Prasidh Krishna (5/220) took as many wickets as Bumrah but leaked too many runs. Mohammed Siraj provided better control but didn’t take wickets.
Going into the second Test, if India are serious about taking 20 wickets, they need five specialist bowlers. They have options on the bench. Akash Deep can provide both control and swing. Arshdeep Singh can bring a left-armer’s angle that’s always an advantage.
Kuldeep Yadav’s wrist spin and variety could be an attacking option on a pitch that’s dry underneath and is expected to assist spinners in the second half of the Test. There is Washington Sundar, who bowls at a similar pace as Jadeja but turns it in opposite direction. He can also bat, much better than Shardul.
Not to forget Nitish Kumar Reddy, who was India’s second highest run-getter in Australia behind Yashasvi Jaiswal. And unlike, Karun Nair and Sai Sudharsan, he can provide a few overs of seam bowling – a sixth bowling option wouldn’t hurt.
India’s selection for the second Test will reflect not just tactical adjustments, but also whether they’ve truly learned from their mistakes in the opener.
The biggest question for India is whether to risk playing Jasprit Bumrah or save their most precious -- and injury-prone -- bowler for later Tests. If he sits out, who will replace him? Who else will be replaced, given the other three pacers were ineffective and expensive, and by whom? Will they stick with a lone spinner or add a second, considering the hot weather and a dry Birmingham pitch?
A five-Test series, especially away from home, is challenging. Even more so when the home side has edged ahead 1-0 after a thrilling chase on a fifth-day pitch. As a result, while the triumphant England are confident enough to go into the second Test unchanged, defeated India are still pondering over the choices they need to make.
And the most important decision they have to make is about Bumrah’s workload. Even before India landed in England, it was already decided that he will play on three of the five Tests. India are being cautious about his workload as he could not take the load of five Tests in a row in Australia and suffered a stress fracture in his back that kept him away from cricket for a couple of months, missing the Champions Trophy.
“Bumrah is definitely available [for selection]. We are just going to see how to manage his workload in the upcoming Test matches,” captain Shubman Gill said. “We just thought we would take a final look once we come to the ground and see what kind of combination that we want to go with tomorrow.”
Bumrah is a maverick. His presence lifts the potential of the playing XI several notches up. The obsessiveness with which his availability for the second Test has been discussed over the last few days shows how valuable he is.
However, no matter what anybody likes to believe and tell others, one player doesn’t win you a Test match. Even if that player is Bumrah. In the last five overseas Tests, in all of which Bumrah played and took 29 wickets, including three 5-fors, India lost four and drew one.
Unless India take care of other factors that contributed to their loss, they will find it difficult to make a comeback in the series. Top of the list is their catching abilities, but also the negligible contribution from the lower-order – just 5 in first innings and 4 in second by India’s No. 8 to 11. In contrast, England’s lower order added 72 in the first innings.
India’s plan to shore up their batting by favouring Shardul Thakur over better bowlers like Akash Deep and Arshdeep Singh backfired badly. Thakur scored just 5 runs in two innings and was trusted to bowl only 16 of the 160 overs India bowled in the match — all other bowlers bowled 40-plus overs each.
Other bowlers struggled too. Prasidh Krishna (5/220) took as many wickets as Bumrah but leaked too many runs. Mohammed Siraj provided better control but didn’t take wickets.
Going into the second Test, if India are serious about taking 20 wickets, they need five specialist bowlers. They have options on the bench. Akash Deep can provide both control and swing. Arshdeep Singh can bring a left-armer’s angle that’s always an advantage.
Kuldeep Yadav’s wrist spin and variety could be an attacking option on a pitch that’s dry underneath and is expected to assist spinners in the second half of the Test. There is Washington Sundar, who bowls at a similar pace as Jadeja but turns it in opposite direction. He can also bat, much better than Shardul.
Not to forget Nitish Kumar Reddy, who was India’s second highest run-getter in Australia behind Yashasvi Jaiswal. And unlike, Karun Nair and Sai Sudharsan, he can provide a few overs of seam bowling – a sixth bowling option wouldn’t hurt.
India’s selection for the second Test will reflect not just tactical adjustments, but also whether they’ve truly learned from their mistakes in the opener.
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