Intra-Squad Warm-Up: Chance To Track Current Form, Bowling Combinations

NDTV

2 days ago

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The Indian senior team will play a four-day intra-squad game in Beckenham, Kent.
This match serves as a simulation before the Test against England starting June 20.
Closed-door sessions prevent tactical insights for the opposition, a strategy used previously.
The artist in Kuldeep Yadav would look to keep an accurate Ravindra Jadeja on toes when both the slow left-arm bowlers take the field during the senior Indian team's four-day intra-squad warm-up game against India A starting in Beckenham, Kent on Friday. The match will be the senior team's only simulation game before the opening Test against England at the Headingly from June 20. The intra-sqaud game acts like a pre-cursor to the Test match. The Indian team under head coach Gautam Gambhir opted for a "closed door" session to prevent the opposition from getting any ideas on the tactical front, emulating a long-established practice among European football clubs.
They had done the same during the tour of Australia earlier this year.
As bowling coach Morne Morkel said on Wednesday, building the stamina to bowl and field 90 overs a day is very different from normal net sessions.
The four-day game, which doesn't have the official first-class status, gives batters a second go if someone is dismissed cheaply.
With 360 overs of match simulation available over four days, it will give the team management a chance to allow the bowling unit get enough overs under their belt.
That would be handy in ensuring that the bowlers -- be it a spinner or a pacer -- have the requisite rhythm in actual match. Gambhir will have some work to do in terms of zeroing in on lone specialist spinner for Headingley.
There is Ravindra Jadeja, whose superior batting becomes a huge factor in SENA countries but against England's 'Bazballers', Kuldeep Yadav's versatility could complement pace spearhead Jasprit Bumrah better if India harbour any hopes of picking 20 wickets.
Jadeja versus Kuldeep is the biggest playing eleven jigsaw puzzle that needs to be sorted by Gambhir and the coaching staff.
Similarly, the intra-squad game will also give the coaches and skipper Shubman Gill a chance to see which of Akash Deep's fuller length or Prasidh Krishna's back of the length stuff works better in these conditions.
Bumrah, who will be playing a red-ball game after six months, will also get a chance to bowl multiple spells and test his fitness having only played IPL since his comeback from a lower back stress injury.