MIchael Clarke Picks India's 'X-Factor' For England Test Series. It's Not Jasprit Bumrah

NDTV

5 hours ago

Former Australia captain Michael Clarke believes India is in "safe hands" and has "enough talent" to trounce England, but it will all come down to how the young-looking squad will leave a mark in the series on a territory known for being "tough." India has taken the first steps towards a new era after batting maestros Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli bid farewell to the Test format more than a month before the five-match series kicks off at Headingley on June 20.
Shubman Gill was deemed Rohit's successor and appointed the Test captain, with Rishabh Pant serving as his deputy. Apart from the two batting bigwigs, India will line up without crafty off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin, who retired midway through the Border-Gavaskar Trophy in Australia, and seasoned pacer Mohammed Shami, who wasn't deemed fit to make the cut for the series.
Apart from the absent stars, India will have to devise a blueprint to maximise Jasprit Bumrah 's limited availability. India has the option to exercise the policy of using its pace spearhead just three times in the series. As of now, clouds of uncertainty hover over which three Test Bumrah would be available to play for.
"Well, yes, I do give them a chance, but it's a lot more inexperienced team than the one I expected it to be on a plane to England. Having no Rohit Sharma, no Virat Kohli is huge. Players come, players go, people retire, and the game moves on. So, that does not mean a new captain is the worst thing for India. I'm not saying that. Somebody retires, and that gives somebody else an opportunity," Clarke said while speaking to Boria Majumdar on Revsportz.
"The main thing for me, though, is the Indian bowling attack. So we're all aware that Bumrah(Jasprit) is not going to play five Tests. So, which Test matches is he going to play? Does he play the first three in a row? You win this series, and the last two will not matter. I don't think that's going to be the case. I think it's going to have to be spaced out because the reason he's not going to play five is for his body," he continued.
"And then I also saw no Shami(Mohammed) in the squad as well. I think him missing the Australian series was huge, and if he and a fit Bumrah was in Australia then it would have been a very different series. But then India has huge talent. You know, I think talent-wise, India will always be in safe hands. It's just how soon can some of these players make a mark in this series. Five Test matches in England is tough, tough cricket, and they need to be conscious of that," he added.
Despite the limited or nonexistent availability of some stars, India has brought in a couple of new faces to replace experience with talent. Sai Sudharsan, Abhimanyu Easwaran, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Arshdeep Singh, and Yashasvi Jaiswal are some players who will take the field for the first time for India in England while donning the whites.
In the bowling department, Prasidh Krishna, Mohammed Siraj, Akash Deep, and Arshdeep will test English batters with their blistering pace, in addition to Bumrah. Left-arm wrist spinner Kuldeep is the sole frontline ball-tweaker picked for the five Tests, who, for Clarke, will be the "X-factor".
"It is a very good attack. Look, I think there's enough talent to win the series in the Indian squad. It's just experience. And like I say, I found playing in India and playing in England in Test match cricket are the two hardest things to do. They're the two biggest series, but the other two hardest places to win. England is just one of those places where you need confidence, you need self-belief, and playing in the conditions and having success there generally gives you that. So, for a lot of these players, it's going to be their first time to play a five-Test match series in those conditions. Now, that doesn't mean you can't win. The positive with that is you can play fearless cricket because you don't know what you don't know," he said.
"So you don't have scars, or you don't have fear. So that could be a positive. I love seeing Kuldeep out there. I think he's earned the right to be India's first-pick spinner. I think he's a match-winner. I think he has an X factor. And I think he will be defining. If India wins the series, I think Kuldeep Yadav could be the difference. He's that big a player, in my opinion, in this Indian team," he added.
India's Test squad for England series: Shubman Gill (c), Rishabh Pant (vc), Yashasvi Jaiswal, KL Rahul, Sai Sudharsan, Abhimanyu Easwaran, Karun Nair, Nitish Reddy, Ravindra Jadeja, Dhruv Jurel, Washington Sundar, Shardul Thakur, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammed Siraj, Prasidh Krishna, Akash Deep, Arshdeep Singh, Kuldeep Yadav.