IND vs ENG Tests: India look a settled unit despite heartbreak at Lord's, trailing the series
London
: India have suffered two heartbreaks on this tour. The first one, in the first Test in Headingley, led to sleepless nights and plenty of discussion about finding the right balance in the playing XI.
After the Lord's defeat, though, the Indian team looks more composed and settled.
The next Test match in Manchester is still eight days away but don't expect the Indian team to get desperate in its preparation.
The team has been given a break for a couple of days before they have one solitary practice session at the Kent County ground here in Beckenham on Thursday. Preparations will only begin in earnest once the team reaches Manchester on Sunday.
India captain Shubman Gill wore a straight face when he was asked if he believed he had a settled playing XI. 'I would say I have a settled XII. And then you see which XI you would want to go for according to the situation and the wicket,' Gill said on Monday.
Jasprit Bumrah's availability in back-to-back matches is, however, in doubt. Bumrah opted to sit out of the Edgbaston Test but Gill and the team management have been clear about the alternative for Bumrah — Akash Deep came in at Edgbaston, picked up a 10-wicket haul and retained his place at Lord's.
Prasidh Krishna sat out when Bumrah returned.
India vs England: India fall short at Lord's, England lead series 2-1
The management isn't too concerned about Mohammed Siraj's workload. Washington Sundar too has responded exceedingly well, lending solidity to the batting at No. 8 and picking up four wickets in the second innings at Lord's.
Karun Nair to get one more opportunity?
The two players who have struggled to cement their places are Karun Nair and Nitish Kumar Reddy. Nair has got off to starts and set good foundations up the order in the last two Tests while batting at No.
3. Reddy showed some fight with the bat in the last innings at Lord's but his batting has been anything but convincing.
His bowling has given the team crucial breakthroughs, though. As for Nair, one believes the team management could give him one more shot at scoring big in this series before deciding to move on.
Poll
Do you believe India will bounce back in the upcoming Test match in Manchester?
Yes, they will win
No, they will lose
It will be a draw
Before the win at Edgbaston, Gill had said he wanted enough bowling options and a longer batting lineup. It seems he has found the sweet spot. He was assertive when he said that he was proud of the effort his team had put in during the third Test.
There must have been disappointment in that dressing room after Lord's but there are unlikely to be any scars.
Catch Rani Rampal's inspiring story on Game On, Episode 4. Watch Here!
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Indian Express
17 minutes ago
- Indian Express
Ollie Pope says he is not massive sledger and says with influence of franchise cricket sledging is getting ‘less and less of it'
On the third evening, when England came to bat with about 10 minutes to go for the close of play, Zack Crawley tried to run down the clock. Indian skipper Shubman Gill and the Indian players got agitated with the incident and had a heated exchange with Crawley. The sledging did not end there but continued through the Test match. When Ollie Pope was asked about his role in sledging, he responded by saying: 'Not really. I am not a massive sledger.' speaking on Sky Sports. Pope also acknowledged that with the rise in franchise cricket and international players sharing dressing rooms, there is 'less and less of it in the game, I think at the minute with franchise cricket. You get to know the opposition well. It's not as much as probably ten years ago.' Pope said. Answering about the fine system for the dresses, Pope said, 'We don't really have a fine system. We're pretty relaxed. We're pretty chill. There are some guys who sort of ruck up in flip flops, other days you're just in your polo looking a bit smart. But as long as the sponsors are on there, it keeps them happy, then there's no real fines to be had.' In the interview, Pope was also asked if taking a quick single was more satisfying or hitting a six, to which he would respond by saying, 'Definitely smashing a six. I think the feeling when it comes off the middle of the bat and it goes with a good trajectory is by far the best feeling. But if you're going to your 100, if you can steal a quick single and enjoy your celebrations, that's pretty good as well.' 'Depends on where you get hit. The padding is pretty good. Generally, if its gloves, or pad, or helmet, or anywhere it's not to bad, but if it's the rib cage and private parts can be pretty sour. Mainly rib cage and arm is the worst places. Padding is pretty good otherwise,' Pope said on how it feels to get hit on the body.
India Today
36 minutes ago
- India Today
Karun Nair slammed by Farokh Engineer: A beautiful 30 is not expected from a No. 3
Former wicketkeeper Farokh Engineer has slammed Karun Nair for his inconsistent run at No.3 for India during the ongoing series against England. Karun, who made a return to the Indian team after more than 3000 days away, has failed to live up to the hype of being a run machine on the Indian domestic circuit. So far, in the three Tests he has played, the 33-year-old has scored just 131 runs at an average of 21.83. While Karun has made some good starts, he hasn't been able to capitalise on it, something that Engineer isn't happy about. Speaking to TOI, the former India wicketkeeper said that while Karun has scored some beautiful cameos, he needs to score bigger as the expectations at No.3 is much higher. advertisement"Karun Nair has been getting brilliant 20s and 30s. He's (Nair) scored beautiful 30 runs, beautiful cover drives and all that. But a beautiful 30 is not expected from a No. 3. You've got to get a not-so-beautiful 100. You need runs on the board. You need (to score) bigger. The expectation should be much higher," said Engineer. 'We should pick the best XI' With Karun's indifferent form a concern, calls have been made for Sai Sudharsan to make a return to the side. The southpaw played in the first match and scored 30 in the second innings. Engineer said that while he hasn't seen a lot of the Tamil Nadu batter, India should pick the best XI for the match. Engineer said that India shouldn't look at the age of Sudharsan and make him play the Manchester Test if he is good enough. "We should pick the best XI. I haven't seen much of Sai Sudharsan. You've got to pick the best player for the time being. Who's going to give you maximum? You are playing for your country. Your reputation is at stake. So, I would say, forget the age. If he's good, play him to win this Test match," said Engineer. India assistant Ryan ten Doeschate recently said that while Karun has been maintaining good rhythm and tempo, more runs are expected from him at No.3. - EndsMust Watch
&w=3840&q=100)
First Post
an hour ago
- First Post
Manjrekar questions Gill's Kohli-like aggression: ‘You don't have to show it when you're captain'
Former India batter Sanjay Manjrekar not only questioned the need for Shubman Gill to exhibit aggression if it did not come to him naturally, he also said on-field flare-ups would often bring out the best in Virat Kohli the batter, which isn't what had happened with the 25-year-old at Lord's recently. read more Shubman Gill's on-field aggression in England in his maiden series as India Test series has earned him comparisons with Virat Kohli. Image: Reuters/AP Shubman Gill is leading India for the first time in the Test format in the ongoing Test series in England, a country where the team has won a total of three Test series' since their first visit in 1932, the last of which occurred under Rahul Dravid's leadership in 2007. Gill has been impressive as leader as well as batter in the ongoing series, especially in the second Test where he registered his maiden win as red-ball captain with a commanding 336-run victory. However, there have been moments and phases where he has allowed the game to slip out of his grasp and allowed the Ben Stokes-led hosts to seize control. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD As per former India batter Sanjay Manjrekar, Gill's on-field flare-up with the English openers shortly before stumps on Day 3 was one such moment. Gill got into a heated exchange with Crawley over the latter's delay tactics during Jasprit Bumrah's over after India had finished level on scores with the visitors with a little over 15 minutes to go for stumps. The 25-year-old skipper, however, couldn't back his words with a match-winning score during India's chase of the 193-run target on the following day as he was dismissed cheaply for 6. Manjrekar, for one, compared Gill with former India captain Virat Kohli, known for his fiery on-field demeanour and wasn't shy of giving it back to the opposition from time to time. 'With Virat Kohli, you could see that he was ready for a scrap' Manjrekar added that it wasn't necessary for Gill to show Kohli-like aggression after becoming the Test captain, adding that he would have exhibited it in the six years that have gone by since he made his India debut in January 2019. 'And just to extend on that point, if Shubman Gill had that kind of a fiery side to him, we would have seen it a little earlier. You don't have to show it when you're captain. Or did he show it because he's got this confidence now that he's won a Test match and he's got so many runs?' Manjrekar said on ESPNCricinfo. 'Because with Virat Kohli, you could see that he was ready for a scrap. He was always waiting to get in the thick of things. Even when he wasn't a captain, you could see him coming in there. So that was a trait that we'd seen even before he was captain. With Shubman Gill, I've never seen it before,' he continued. The cricketer-turned-commentator crucially added that while Gill was dismissed cheaply a day after his verbal battle with the English openers, such on-field face-offs made Kohli an even better batter, and it was pressure situations that often brought out the best in him. 'The thing with Virat Kohli was that he would get even more fired up and become a better batter (if things got nasty). What disappointed me with Shubman Gill and that is why I was wondering, where is Shubman Gill heading? Because that seemed like it didn't have the right effect on Shubman Gill the batter. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD 'He came out looking very tentative and, you know, these days we are privy to the stump mic and we could hear the things being said and there were some personal attacks made. This could be a new experience for Shubman Gill because these days, as you can see, you know, with Indian players, there's mostly friendly reception from a lot of foreign teams. So this was new territory. And he looked tentative and wasn't up for it,' he added. Despite facing a couple of setbacks in the form of defeats at Headingley (five wickets) and Lord's (22 runs), Gill still has the opportunity to collect a rare series win on English soil on captaincy debut with two Tests still to be played against Stokes and Co. For that to happen, however, India will have to win the fourth Test that gets underway at Manchester's Old Trafford from Wednesday.
