England pose a serious threat to India and should not be taken lightly

[saintgrace]

Other than Fielding coach's brain ****, everything else was well planned in Australia.
I would expect the same professional approach against England too. My prediction is 3-1 in india's favour.

 

[Bewal Express]

India will make mince meat out of this England team.

 

[JaDed]

I wouldn’t have worried if we had Jaddu. Stokes,Butler,Root are gonna cause us issues

 

[Bhaag Viru Bhaag]

If we had a deadly left arm spinner like Jadeja and our 2 skiddy reverse swing quicks in shami and umesh at our disposal, we would have buried England. Now I'm not sure. Can our guys score big hundreds after that OZ tour? Lots of questions for India to answer

This could be like India's tour of Australia in 2018. You never know with this England team.

 

[Bhaag Viru Bhaag]

Other than Fielding coach's brain ****, everything else was well planned in Australia.
I would expect the same professional approach against England too. My prediction is 3-1 in india's favour.

Even Australians dropped catches. I don't think that was planned by Indian team management.

 

[Chrish]

Which players will be unfit? I know Jadeja is out which is huge. I think Ash will be fit.

What about Bhumrah, Shami, Yadav, Ishant? Are they gonna bring Saha as a keeper and let Pant be a specialist batsman? Pant isn’t a good keeper tbh..

 

[Saurav]

Who in SL team, are we comparing Kohli, Rahane, Pujara, Bumrah. Gill, Ashwin, Rohit, Pandya, Shastri with.

The guys who beat SA in SA 2-0 in thier previous tour

 

[Ab Fan]

Which players will be unfit? I know Jadeja is out which is huge. I think Ash will be fit.

What about Bhumrah, Shami, Yadav, Ishant? Are they gonna bring Saha as a keeper and let Pant be a specialist batsman? Pant isn’t a good keeper tbh..

Shami and Yadav are also out. As for Keeper, no update. Most likely Pant.

 

[ind_win]

India vs England Test Series:
Jos Butler
only available for 1st Test against India, set to miss next 3
https://www.insidesport.co/india-vs...or-1st-test-against-india-set-to-miss-next-3/

Bairstow, Wood rested for first two India Tests
https://www.icc-cricket.com/news/1984057

It is up to england who they rest who they play. But Ind should make it as tough as it can be for Eng batsmen. Cannot wait for "in these conditions" commentators like Nasser Hussain see it live. And one Indian commentator should make it a point to call England players "donkeys" when nasser hussain is in the commentary box. sood samet.

 

[Saurav]

On topic,was gonna say the same thing.Dunno where the arrogance comes from

If we can beat Aus at Gabba with net bowlers,Eng certainly can beat us with full squad having guys like Stokes,Archer,Root,Anderson etc

 

[Cpt. Rishwat]

England will consider a drawn series a great result in India. I think that is achievable as they have good batsmen who will punish Indian bowling as long as the pitch is fit for test cricket - which is by no means a given considering past series.

India's real coming of age will come in England where they have always struggled. If they can win here or in NZ, then everyone will have to sit up and take notice. Aus was a great victory, but India have done well there for a decade now due to true wickets which are a bit easier for batting than in England where you can get more swing and seam.

 

[ind_win]

what India achieved in Aus is first of its kind for India, very rare. It does not happen frequently. If that were the case, India should think it would lose all series to England like the 2012 one in India. Did that happen ? Taking England lightly is one thing, over estimating them is another. Also, one good thing is winter is on the wane and sun light will tire England players more.

 

[Saurav]

England will consider a drawn series a great result in India. I think that is achievable as they have good batsmen who will punish Indian bowling as long as the pitch is fit for test cricket - which is by no means a given considering past series.

India's real coming of age will come in England where they have always struggled. If they can win here or in NZ, then everyone will have to sit up and take notice. Aus was a great victory, but India have done well there for a decade now due to true wickets which are a bit easier for batting than in England where you can get more swing and seam.

you mean pitches where Rohit averages 88,Mayank averages 99.5 and Indian bowlers still take 20 wickets?

 

[Buffet]

you mean pitches where Rohit averages 88,Mayank averages 99.5 and Indian bowlers still take 20 wickets?

Did not Eng score 400+ many times in the last series? Pitches were very good to bat.

 

[IndianMafia]

Expecting atleast 3 centuries from kohli. Couple from openers. Kuldeep Yadav time has come !

 

[Indiafan]

England will consider a drawn series a great result in India. I think that is achievable as they have good batsmen who will punish Indian bowling as long as the pitch is fit for test cricket - which is by no means a given considering past series.

India's real coming of age will come in England where they have always struggled. If they can win here or in NZ, then everyone will have to sit up and take notice. Aus was a great victory, but India have done well there for a decade now due to true wickets which are a bit easier for batting than in England where you can get more swing and seam.

No one who has watched cricket in the last 10 years will raise questions about Indian pitches. Particularly pitches where pacers take bulk of the wickets. Just comes across as rantings of those no nothing uncles we all know so well

 

[Mesozoic]

England will consider a drawn series a great result in India. I think that is achievable as they have good batsmen who will punish Indian bowling as long as the pitch is fit for test cricket - which is by no means a given considering past series.

When was the last time you actually watched a game in India, cap?

Should have checked the scores when your "fellow Brits" toured India last time around before.....

 

[sam_ahm]

England are a tough side, probably the most likely side which has the ability to trouble India in India. There is no way we can take them for granted. It will be a hard fought series.

 

[Swashbuckler]

England will consider a drawn series a great result in India. I think that is achievable as they have good batsmen who will punish Indian bowling as long as the pitch is fit for test cricket - which is by no means a given considering past series.

Last time Eng toured here, we laid out the flattest pitches possible. England had a 500+ 1st innings score in first test, 3 400+ 1st innings scores after that and still lost 0-4. In Chennai they scored 480 only for us to get almost 800 and win by an innings, Karun Nair got an unbeaten 300 and we don't know where he is now.

Pitches will be flat if we go by recent history, Rohit averages almost 100 at home while Pujara, Kohli
consistently average in the 55-65 range. Even Mayank has 70+ average but won't start in the first test after Gill's series in Australia.

Pitches should offer slow turn as is expected but I think quicks will get purchase since we have quality pacers now and curators will ensure they are in the contest. Last 3 years almost 60% of our wickets at home are picked by quicks like Shami, Umesh and it has been a while since Ashwin, Jadeja picked 5fers like they used to do so often 7-8 years back.

Main worry for England will be picking up 20 Indian wickets, South Africa was struggling to pick 10 Indian wickets last time and I don't think England has a test bowler like Rabada. Unlike 2012, this English spin attack looks weak and Moeen hasn't been a regular for a while now.

Expect a tough contest, India will be made to work hard since your team bats well and bats deep. And some X-factor cricketers like Stokes, Archer. I am mainly worried about fatigue and dip in performance after emotional high of Gabba. Wish our players had at least a month's rest after that gruelling Australia tour.

 

[Swashbuckler]

India's real coming of age will come in England where they have always struggled. If they can win here or in NZ, then everyone will have to sit up and take notice. Aus was a great victory, but India have done well there for a decade now due to true wickets which are a bit easier for batting than in England where you can get more swing and seam.

Yes, true litmus test for this side. If they want to conclusively prove that they are better than the 2000s Fab 4 side, must do better in England and NZ, especially England. India drew a 4 test series and won a 3 test series in England in 2000s, won in NZ in 2009. OTOH we have faced humiliation after humiliation in these two countries in the last 8-9 years, even under skipper Kohli.

 

[Saurav]

Last time Eng toured here, we laid out the flattest pitches possible. England had a 500+ 1st innings score in first test, 3 400+ 1st innings scores after that and still lost 0-4. In Chennai they scored 480 only for us to get almost 800 and win by an innings, Karun Nair got an unbeaten 300 and we don't know where he is now.

Pitches will be flat if we go by recent history, Rohit averages almost 100 at home while Pujara, Kohli
consistently average in the 55-65 range. Even Mayank has 70+ average but won't start in the first test after Gill's series in Australia.

Pitches should offer slow turn as is expected but I think quicks will get purchase since we have quality pacers now and curators will ensure they are in the contest. Last 3 years almost 60% of our wickets at home are picked by quicks like Shami, Umesh and it has been a while since Ashwin, Jadeja picked 5fers like they used to do so often 7-8 years back.

Main worry for England will be picking up 20 Indian wickets, South Africa was struggling to pick 10 Indian wickets last time and I don't think England has a test bowler like Rabada. Unlike 2012, this English spin attack looks weak and Moeen hasn't been a regular for a while now.

Expect a tough contest, India will be made to work hard since your team bats well and bats deep. And some X-factor cricketers like Stokes, Archer. I am mainly worried about fatigue and dip in performance after emotional high of Gabba. Wish our players had at least a month's rest after that gruelling Australia tour.

Rabada's record in Asia is average.Anderson,Broad and Archer will pose greater threat than SA attack

 

[Saurav]

Expecting atleast 3 centuries from kohli. Couple from openers. Kuldeep Yadav time has come !

Won't play him if Ashwin is fully fit

 

[Hasan123]

England have a resilience and character about them, but I don’t see them beating India due to their spin attack and ability to play spin barring Root. Hope we do get a competitive series.

 

[Napa]

Also, its been a while since any of our guys hit double tons in tests. Want to see at least 3-4 double tons from them in this series.

Indians ran the English bowling ragged the last time they visited. I remember 752/7d was our last innings with Karun Nair 303*. We should bring Nair back just to give the English bowlers nightmares.

I may be mistaken, but I think their main bowlers are older and they really haven't come up with good new bowlers.

 

[Saurav]

Indians ran the English bowling ragged the last time they visited. I remember 752/7d was our last innings with Karun Nair 303*. We should bring Nair back just to give the English bowlers nightmares.

I may be mistaken, but I think their main bowlers are older and they really haven't come up with good new bowlers.

Archer is there

 

[ex-q-zit]

Dom Bess and Jack Leach are their main spinners. Dont think they will be a big threat. Indian batting line-up is surely better equipped than the srilankan batting line-up to handle them. With Engalnd resting key players for a few tests it weakens them more.

 

[Napa]

Yes, true litmus test for this side. If they want to conclusively prove that they are better than the 2000s Fab 4 side, must do better in England and NZ, especially England. India drew a 4 test series and won a 3 test series in England in 2000s, won in NZ in 2009. OTOH we have faced humiliation after humiliation in these two countries in the last 8-9 years, even under skipper Kohli.

To win in England, we will need Rahane as the captain. We were well on our way to getting thrashed in Australia (following our earlier thrashing in NZ and series losses in SA and ENG) till Rahane took over the captaincy. BCCI needs to have a zero tolerance policy for failure given the abundance of great players it has at its disposal.

Unfortunately we will handily beat Eng in India, and Kohli will maintain his grip on the captaincy.

 

[ManFan]

LOL.

ENG will not win one match.

Maybe the last Test after the score is already 3-0.

Anything less than 3-1 will be an embarrassment for the “GOAT Asian Test team”.

 

[Cpt. Rishwat]

When was the last time you actually watched a game in India, cap?

Should have checked the scores when your "fellow Brits" toured India last time around before.....

I don't watch games in India to be fair, I was just going off some old stereotypes, which since I am English I think should be allowed some leeway.

 

[Napa]

So after predicting that we will lose 4-0 in aus the same set of posters are predicting a win for england.
3-1 3-0 or 4-0 are the only results possible.
Please dont forget that this time we have a great Pace attack along with ATG spinners.So its not like 2016 where you can pummel our pacers and play safely vs spin. Bumrah will be making his debut on Indian Soil, Ishant is back and Ashwin is on an all time high after winning us a series in AUS.

Jadeja with his consistent bowling accuracy and his batting will be sorely missed, but I think we have enough weapons to see off the English.

 

[ex-q-zit]

I don't watch games in India to be fair, I was just going off some old stereotypes, which since I am English I think should be allowed some leeway.

You seem to be stuck with views about the Indian team of the 90s where we had no fast bowling pack of attack, no aggressive intent in chasing large 4th innings totals, won handsomely at home and lost equally handsomely away with a fight, played on rank turners at home and lastly had only Sachin as a reliable batsman (until dravid n ganguly arrived in mid-90s). You need to update yourself unless you don't want to be taken seriously. In the past decade or so Indian pitches have been sporting with help to both fast bowlers and spinners hence Umesh yadav, ishant sharma etc have been quite successful even at home.

 

[Napa]

Archer is a bigger threat than Anderson.

Archer is there

True, I missed Archer. He is fast but isn't he a bit of a spray gun? His bowling avg after 11 Tests is 31.10 compared to 26.60 for Anderson and 27.56 for Broad.

https://www.espncricinfo.com/england/content/player/669855.html

 

[ikky47]

Easy win for India, should be looking to clean sweep England. Looking more forward to the tour in the summer. India should look to beat England, last time they came close, this time they have it in them to win the series.

 

[ikky47]

True, I missed Archer. He is fast but isn't he a bit of a spray gun? His bowling avg after 11 Tests is 31.10 compared to 26.60 for Anderson and 27.56 for Broad.

https://www.espncricinfo.com/england/content/player/669855.html

Archer also I think won't be as quick and effective once the matches are played, have seen his bowling speeds massively drop in latter stages of a test match.

 

[Indiafan]

Archer is there

No way Archer is a bigger threat than Cummins. He also cannot maintain his speeds on flattish pitches

 

[ex-q-zit]

To win in England, we will need Rahane as the captain. We were well on our way to getting thrashed in Australia (following our earlier thrashing in NZ and series losses in SA and ENG) till Rahane took over the captaincy. BCCI needs to have a zero tolerance policy for failure given the abundance of great players it has at its disposal.

Unfortunately we will handily beat Eng in India, and Kohli will maintain his grip on the captaincy.

Its unfair to blame Kohli for the loss in Adelaide. At the end of the 1st innings we had the upper hand and one bad session turned the game on its head. A one-off batting collapse cannot be blamed on a captain. based on that collapse speculating that we would have lost the series if Kohli would have continued is ridiculous. If you want to add ifs and buts then we can argue IF kohli would have been their we would have chased 407 in Sydney.

As much as Rahane deserves all the accolades for leading us to victory the coaching staff too played their part eg., devising strategies like leg side bowling (which by the way Kohli too executed successfully in Adelaide). The aggressive intent to go for Victory rather than draw didn't happen overnight in Brisbane but started in Adelaide 2014. You can put as many astericks you want but before this victory we won in Australia in 2018 as well.

Rahane didn't wield a magic wand and change india's fortunes. It was an effort that dates back to June-July when they planned the legside bowling. Also Vikram Rathore discussed ways to handle Lyon's bowling with our batsman much before the IPL started. Both captains executed the plans well except for that freak collapse.

These fast bowlers we are so proud off were plucked from a tree on the way to board the flight to Australia but the effort of Kohli and coaching team since 2014.

 

[Saj]

The Sri Lankan batsmen gifted England's spinners a lot of cheap wickets. There is no way India's batsmen will do the same.

There is a huge gulf in class between the Sri Lankan top order and India's batting line-up.

 

[Napa]

Its unfair to blame Kohli for the loss in Adelaide. At the end of the 1st innings we had the upper hand and one bad session turned the game on its head. A one-off batting collapse cannot be blamed on a captain. based on that collapse speculating that we would have lost the series if Kohli would have continued is ridiculous. If you want to add ifs and buts then we can argue IF kohli would have been their we would have chased 407 in Sydney.

As much as Rahane deserves all the accolades for leading us to victory the coaching staff too played their part eg., devising strategies like leg side bowling (which by the way Kohli too executed successfully in Adelaide). The aggressive intent to go for Victory rather than draw didn't happen overnight in Brisbane but started in Adelaide 2014. You can put as many astericks you want but before this victory we won in Australia in 2018 as well.

Rahane didn't wield a magic wand and change india's fortunes. It was an effort that dates back to June-July when they planned the legside bowling. Also Vikram Rathore discussed ways to handle Lyon's bowling with our batsman much before the IPL started. Both captains executed the plans well except for that freak collapse.

These fast bowlers we are so proud off were plucked from a tree on the way to board the flight to Australia but the effort of Kohli and coaching team since 2014.

You may be correct as these things are impossible to determine with any certainty. However, given the number of super players India has, any failure should not be tolerated, let alone 3 away series losses to SA, Eng, and NZ (besides the first Test loss to Aus). Only success Kohli has had against a SENA country is the 2018 series, and that too with some important Aussie players missing.

Accountability must be there for the captain following losses. However, Kohli has become a celebrity and it is hard to eject him from the captaincy without causing a ruckus.

 

[RyanRyan10]

To win in England, we will need Rahane as the captain.[/B]We were well on our way to getting thrashed in Australia (following our earlier thrashing in NZ and series losses in SA and ENG) till Rahane took over the captaincy. BCCI needs to have a zero tolerance policy for failure given the abundance of great players it has at its disposal.

Unfortunately we will handily beat Eng in India, and Kohli will maintain his grip on the captaincy.

We need to win tosses and play swing bowlers who could bat instead "best 3 pacers" who all are no 11s and one of them has a poor record in those conditions.

 

[Cpt. Rishwat]

You seem to be stuck with views about the Indian team of the 90s where we had no fast bowling pack of attack, no aggressive intent in chasing large 4th innings totals, won handsomely at home and lost equally handsomely away with a fight, played on rank turners at home and lastly had only Sachin as a reliable batsman (until dravid n ganguly arrived in mid-90s). You need to update yourself unless you don't want to be taken seriously. In the past decade or so Indian pitches have been sporting with help to both fast bowlers and spinners hence Umesh yadav, ishant sharma etc have been quite successful even at home.

To be fair I stopped taking much notice of Indian cricket when Indian cut bilateral cricket ties with Pakistan. I don't need to be updated on anything about Indian cricket as things stand.

 

[ex-q-zit]

You may be correct as these things are impossible to determine with any certainty. However, given the number of super players India has, any failure should not be tolerated, let alone 3 away series losses to SA, Eng, and NZ (besides the first Test loss to Aus). Only success Kohli has had against a SENA country is the 2018 series, and that too with some important Aussie players missing.

Accountability must be there for the captain following losses. However, Kohli has become a celebrity and it is hard to eject him from the captaincy without causing a ruckus.

That theory of 2 key batsmen missing has been now successfully debunked.

Yes, I agree any captain no matter how big a superstar needs to be accountable.

I have given Kohli a benefit of doubt because although we had a good bowling attack during the tours of SA, ENG and NZ it was our batting which let us down. We didn't have a settled pair of openers and compounded by some questionable team selections. Even Pujara and Rahane seemed to be owefully out of form. But now with rohit and Shubman giving us reasonable opening partnerships (though they need to perform better) and Pant 2.0 proving his mettle the coming tours of ENG and SA will be litmus test for Kohli. If he fails it will difficult for him to be at the helm of affairs unquestionably.

So lets give him another year and reserve our judgement until then.

 

[Hyperion66]

Its unfair to blame Kohli for the loss in Adelaide. At the end of the 1st innings we had the upper hand and one bad session turned the game on its head. A one-off batting collapse cannot be blamed on a captain. based on that collapse speculating that we would have lost the series if Kohli would have continued is ridiculous. If you want to add ifs and buts then we can argue IF kohli would have been their we would have chased 407 in Sydney.

As much as Rahane deserves all the accolades for leading us to victory the coaching staff too played their part eg., devising strategies like leg side bowling (which by the way Kohli too executed successfully in Adelaide). The aggressive intent to go for Victory rather than draw didn't happen overnight in Brisbane but started in Adelaide 2014. You can put as many astericks you want but before this victory we won in Australia in 2018 as well.

Rahane didn't wield a magic wand and change india's fortunes. It was an effort that dates back to June-July when they planned the legside bowling. Also Vikram Rathore discussed ways to handle Lyon's bowling with our batsman much before the IPL started. Both captains executed the plans well except for that freak collapse.

These fast bowlers we are so proud off were plucked from a tree on the way to board the flight to Australia but the effort of Kohli and coaching team since 2014.

Top post.

 

[ex-q-zit]

To be fair I stopped taking much notice of Indian cricket when Indian cut bilateral cricket ties with Pakistan. I don't need to be updated on anything about Indian cricket as things stand.

Then why do you want to comment on Indian pitches without having any idea about them? You have no idea of the team or conditions but still want to drop your pearls of wisdom.

 

[Swashbuckler]

Rabada's record in Asia is average.Anderson,Broad and Archer will pose greater threat than SA attack

Rabada has an average record in India, did well in Sri Lanka some 3 years back. To be fair he bowled well in India but we showed him respect, made an attempt to deny him wickets.

Anderson, Broad have worse record in India over a long period. I don't think Archer moves the ball like Rabada, Cummins, Hazlewood, Boult, Holder so we should do well against him. Pace, bounce doesn't affect us one bit, you need lateral movement to rattle this Indian side.

 

[rajvis16]

Seems like you are the one who is "punch drunk"! But the Indian team appreciates your concern and will make sure to take England seriously since they do not want you disappointed.

 

[Swashbuckler]

LOL.

ENG will not win one match.

Maybe the last Test after the score is already 3-0.

Anything less than 3-1 will be an embarrassment for the “GOAT Asian Test team”.

No way is this Indian side the GOAT Asian team, yet. No matter what our fans say, this team has potential but unless we improve in England/NZ like conditions we aren't in the conversation. 2021-22 will answer a lot of questions since we tour Eng and SA, great shot at redemption.

Our 2001-10 side travelled better overseas. In that decade India competed so well in SENA, beat a strong Pak side in Pak, lost only one series at home.

 

[Swashbuckler]

To win in England, we will need Rahane as the captain. We were well on our way to getting thrashed in Australia (following our earlier thrashing in NZ and series losses in SA and ENG) till Rahane took over the captaincy. BCCI needs to have a zero tolerance policy for failure given the abundance of great players it has at its disposal.

Unfortunately we will handily beat Eng in India, and Kohli will maintain his grip on the captaincy.

Agree, Kohli is unable to get the best out of this set of players. His selection policy honestly baffles me, he crumbles under pressure and has very little luck. How he can captain us in all 3 formats is simply beyond me. Even his batting since 2018 has declined. Wish he himself gives up captaincy in a couple of formats and focuses more on batting.

Jadeja with his consistent bowling accuracy and his batting will be sorely missed, but I think we have enough weapons to see off the English.

After this Aus series I am not worried. We have a very good bench strength, till now we were afraid to back youngsters. I see this as an opportunity to test ARs Axar/Sundar or a specialist bowler like Kuldeep in relatively easy home conditions. They all have ability, just need experience. Ashwin and Jadeja are in their 30s, we must groom their successors. Ashiwn's fitness is also a problem, he struggles to last the whole series now. Maybe we play him for 3 tests and if the series is won by then get another youngster in his place to gain experience. We must move beyond individuals and make all players replaceable since talent pool isn't a problem, that will make us a great side.

 

[Napa]

Then why do you want to comment on Indian pitches without having any idea about them? You have no idea of the team or conditions but still want to drop your pearls of wisdom.

He is an Englishman who is not interested in Indian cricket because they don't play Pakistan, even though India is scheduled to play England soon. Figure him out if you can.

 

[Napa]

Agree, Kohli is unable to get the best out of this set of players. His selection policy honestly baffles me, he crumbles under pressure and has very little luck. How he can captain us in all 3 formats is simply beyond me. Even his batting since 2018 has declined. Wish he himself gives up captaincy in a couple of formats and focuses more on batting.

After this Aus series I am not worried. We have a very good bench strength, till now we were afraid to back youngsters. I see this as an opportunity to test ARs Axar/Sundar or a specialist bowler like Kuldeep in relatively easy home conditions. They all have ability, just need experience. Ashwin and Jadeja are in their 30s, we must groom their successors. Ashiwn's fitness is also a problem, he struggles to last the whole series now. Maybe we play him for 3 tests and if the series is won by then get another youngster in his place to gain experience. We must move beyond individuals and make all players replaceable since talent pool isn't a problem, that will make us a great side.

Agree on both Kohli's captaincy and the need to play the youngsters.

 

[RedwoodOriginal]

England's openers are walking wickets on spinning wickets. And that includes Rory Burns.

If England know what's good for them they will bring back Keaton Jennings

 

[Indiafan]

Its unfair to blame Kohli for the loss in Adelaide. At the end of the 1st innings we had the upper hand and one bad session turned the game on its head. A one-off batting collapse cannot be blamed on a captain. based on that collapse speculating that we would have lost the series if Kohli would have continued is ridiculous. If you want to add ifs and buts then we can argue IF kohli would have been their we would have chased 407 in Sydney.

As much as Rahane deserves all the accolades for leading us to victory the coaching staff too played their part eg., devising strategies like leg side bowling (which by the way Kohli too executed successfully in Adelaide). The aggressive intent to go for Victory rather than draw didn't happen overnight in Brisbane but started in Adelaide 2014. You can put as many astericks you want but before this victory we won in Australia in 2018 as well.

Rahane didn't wield a magic wand and change india's fortunes. It was an effort that dates back to June-July when they planned the legside bowling. Also Vikram Rathore discussed ways to handle Lyon's bowling with our batsman much before the IPL started. Both captains executed the plans well except for that freak collapse.

These fast bowlers we are so proud off were plucked from a tree on the way to board the flight to Australia but the effort of Kohli and coaching team since 2014.

On the other hand, a one off brilliant decision like ensuring left and right hand combo is there to unsettle bowlers (like selecting Pant) and promoting Pant can change the very dynamic of a game. People still remember Karachi where Kamran Akmal came in at 39 for 6 and counter attacked to change the momentum on a swinging/seaming track and won the match

Pant was very much capable of playing that sort of innings and its on the captain for not choosing him and playing it safe. If a captain cannot recognize importance of match-winners, its on him. And Kohli has shown this again and again when he doesnt punt on many youngsters.

 

[King_Kohli]

On the other hand, a one off brilliant decision like ensuring left and right hand combo is there to unsettle bowlers (like selecting Pant) and promoting Pant can change the very dynamic of a game. People still remember Karachi where Kamran Akmal came in at 39 for 6 and counter attacked to change the momentum on a swinging/seaming track and won the match

Pant was very much capable of playing that sort of innings and its on the captain for not choosing him and playing it safe. If a captain cannot recognize importance of match-winners, its on him. And Kohli has shown this again and again when he doesnt punt on many youngsters.

Batting coach Vikram Rathod told off-spinner R Ashwin that Virat Kohli had suggested that wicket-keeper Rishabh Pant should be asked for the conditions in Sydney and sent up to bat before returning to India after the Adelaide Test. Can be sent up to bat. Rathore said that after losing the Adelaide Test, Virat had said that Pant could be sent up to retain the left right combination.

 

[Indiafan]

Batting coach Vikram Rathod told off-spinner R Ashwin that Virat Kohli had suggested that wicket-keeper Rishabh Pant should be asked for the conditions in Sydney and sent up to bat before returning to India after the Adelaide Test. Can be sent up to bat. Rathore said that after losing the Adelaide Test, Virat had said that Pant could be sent up to retain the left right combination.

Yeah that's just Kohli PR working at this point. Kohli never cared for the left-right combo and Pant. Watch him drop Pant in this series for Saha

 

[Mesozoic]

To be fair I stopped taking much notice of Indian cricket when Indian cut bilateral cricket ties with Pakistan. I don't need to be updated on anything about Indian cricket as things stand.

Fair enough. But you should not pass any judgements on Indian wickets if that's the case. Should you? Makes you look rather silly I'm afraid.

 

[BreadPakoda]

On the other hand, a one off brilliant decision like ensuring left and right hand combo is there to unsettle bowlers (like selecting Pant) and promoting Pant can change the very dynamic of a game. People still remember Karachi where Kamran Akmal came in at 39 for 6 and counter attacked to change the momentum on a swinging/seaming track and won the match

Pant was very much capable of playing that sort of innings and its on the captain for not choosing him and playing it safe. If a captain cannot recognize importance of match-winners, its on him. And Kohli has shown this again and again when he doesnt punt on many youngsters.

Agree with this. Kohli is an awesome batsman, a good captain but poor at identifying talent.

 

[dildilpak]

Batting coach Vikram Rathod told off-spinner R Ashwin that Virat Kohli had suggested that wicket-keeper Rishabh Pant should be asked for the conditions in Sydney and sent up to bat before returning to India after the Adelaide Test. Can be sent up to bat. Rathore said that after losing the Adelaide Test, Virat had said that Pant could be sent up to retain the left right combination.

I saw the whole Ashwin series & one thing really stuck me - either it was Ravi Shastri or Kohli mentioned as the one making the strategic calls. All the other coaches were infact highly praising Shastri for his leadership throughout the series. Looks like for all the hype the Kohli haters are giving him, Rahane himself was not involved in these calls. Which could very well be the case because this is still Kohli/Shastri’s team & Rahane was only the stand-in skipper.

Probably Rahane to his credit was more involved in on-field management than the strategic decisions, but no doubt it also comes across that his role in the whole series win could also be overstated?

 

[dildilpak]

Was watching some snippets of the England-SL 2nd test today - it looked like SL bowlers really bowled badly to Root & most of the runs Root scored mostly via sweeps? In that case, Root wont have it that easy against Indian bowlers.

 

[viveks]

Its unfair to blame Kohli for the loss in Adelaide. At the end of the 1st innings we had the upper hand and one bad session turned the game on its head. A one-off batting collapse cannot be blamed on a captain. based on that collapse speculating that we would have lost the series if Kohli would have continued is ridiculous. If you want to add ifs and buts then we can argue IF kohli would have been their we would have chased 407 in Sydney.

As much as Rahane deserves all the accolades for leading us to victory the coaching staff too played their part eg., devising strategies like leg side bowling (which by the way Kohli too executed successfully in Adelaide). The aggressive intent to go for Victory rather than draw didn't happen overnight in Brisbane but started in Adelaide 2014. You can put as many astericks you want but before this victory we won in Australia in 2018 as well.

Rahane didn't wield a magic wand and change india's fortunes. It was an effort that dates back to June-July when they planned the legside bowling. Also Vikram Rathore discussed ways to handle Lyon's bowling with our batsman much before the IPL started. Both captains executed the plans well except for that freak collapse.

These fast bowlers we are so proud off were plucked from a tree on the way to board the flight to Australia but the effort of Kohli and coaching team since 2014.

This is a good post. The reason India have had their successes(and their failures) is because they have focused on the process over the results. They have been making the logical choices as a team and coming up with good tactics based on their experiences, so none of their failures and successes are based on one individual. If they started firing people cause they lost or won they wouldn't be where they are now

 

[BaaliSoda]

In their last tour to India, despite winning multiple tosses and scoring 400+ scores four times out of five tests (in their 1st innings), England still went on to lose 3 of those tests by heavy margins.

In recent times, pitches in India have largely become more flatter with not much of a Bunsen burner types that people usually associate with. For South Africa series in 2019, we had some of the best pitches which offered plenty of help for our seamers (remember seeing our pacers bullying the SA batsmen more so than spinners in that series).

The current English side will definitely be not a walk-over for India, but I still expect us to win the series by good margin.

 

[globalcitizen]

I want to understand what gives the OP impression that india is taking series lightly.

Looks like England are the one who are taking this series lightly. Not playing major players in pretext of rest and player management, and also not playing enough practice games before real series. This is an overseas tour and where you have flunked badly so some extra preparation needed

 

[Cpt. Rishwat]

I want to understand what gives the OP impression that india is taking series lightly.

Looks like England are the one who are taking this series lightly. Not playing major players in pretext of rest and player management, and also not playing enough practice games before real series. This is an overseas tour and where you have flunked badly so some extra preparation needed

Playing in Sri Lanka is decent preparation for the conditions if not the calibre of opposition.

 

[JaDed]

No way is this Indian side the GOAT Asian team, yet. No matter what our fans say, this team has potential but unless we improve in England/NZ like conditions we aren't in the conversation. 2021-22 will answer a lot of questions since we tour Eng and SA, great shot at redemption.

Our 2001-10 side travelled better overseas. In that decade India competed so well in SENA, beat a strong Pak side in Pak, lost only one series at home.

Our fans don’t say this GOAT Asian team as much as their one particular fans says that lol

 

[sharmaji]

Root is in good form. I hope Shastri & Co come up with good plans for him. Kohli and Ishant coming back will boost the team but not having Jadeja in the team is a huge setback for us. He has been an excellent bowler and batsman for the past few years. I wonder who will play in his place. I am not sure about Axar's caliber as an allrounder.

England's fast bowling (Broad, Anderson) would be good as usual, they need to be carefully handled, like we did last time and the time before. They are playing pretty much the same pace attack as they did in the past 3 series in India and our pacers outperformed their pacers every time, maybe Archer will add some fire this time. Their spinners this time around (Bess and Leach) are not as good as Swann and Panesar though.

Also, the behaviour of pitches in both Chennai and Ahmedabad is unknown, Indian team better prepare for any situation, like how they did in Australia.

 

[sindhiboy]

England's openers are walking wickets on spinning wickets. And that includes Rory Burns.

If England know what's good for them they will bring back Keaton Jennings

Burns has a century in sri lanka Jennings is pure garbage vs seam

 

[RedwoodOriginal]

Burns has a century in sri lanka Jennings is pure garbage vs seam

Look at Jennings' record in Asia.

 

[mastimasti]

Hope Shastri and the team aren't punch drunk after the Aussie tour. This England side with Root and Anderson in red hot form are absolutely DEMOLISHING Sri Lanka in Sri Lanka and are going to hit the ground running in Chennai on February 5.

We need to be on our guard and make sure half the team doesn't capsize to injuries again. As we've seen before in 2012, it isn't impossible for a couple of handy spinners and a class batsman or two to beat us even in home conditions.

I am not sure this is quite accurate.

England have been terrific in Sri Lanka but they have just sent home one of their best batters against spin, JImmy and Broad may not play together and we know Root will get more 50s than 100s. Add to that a couple of guys returning for India, most of all Kohli and the India side is miles better than Sri Lanka.

I also think England's spin bowling options are quite weak.

 

[shamaan]

England should go into the test match with this line up

Sibley
Burns
Crawley
Root
Stokes
Buttler
Moen ali/woakes
Bess
Broad/acher
Anderson
Leach

 

[shamaan]

I am not sure this is quite accurate.

England have been terrific in Sri Lanka but they have just sent home one of their best batters against spin, JImmy and Broad may not play together and we know Root will get more 50s than 100s. Add to that a couple of guys returning for India, most of all Kohli and the India side is miles better than Sri Lanka.

I also think England's spin bowling options are quite weak.

Thats why i would include Moen ali in the team as a third spinner

 

[mastimasti]

Thats why i would include Moen ali in the team as a third spinner

They are likely to play him...but it will not help much.

 

[MP2011]

Why are we playing 4 tests against England at home when we played 5 tests last time we toured England? Also, why are we playing 5 tests AGAIN when we tour them later this year?

Why is BCCI so submissive even now? Is Ganguly's persona just fake or is there any substance in it?

 

[RajBan]

Why are we playing 4 tests against England at home when we played 5 tests last time we toured England? Also, why are we playing 5 tests AGAIN when we tour them later this year?

Why is BCCI so submissive even now? Is Ganguly's persona just fake or is there any substance in it?

What's the problem with playing 5 tests? Personally feel test series should be 4-5 matches. If the teams are competitive, it makes it a awesome contest for those who like Test cricket. What is to do with persona here?

 

[MP2011]

There is no problem in playing 5 tests, more the merrier!

Problem arises when the other board doesn't reciprocate our gesture of playing number of tests we play at their home.

 

[RajBan]

There is no problem in playing 5 tests, more the merrier!

Problem arises when the other board doesn't reciprocate our gesture of playing number of tests we play at their home.

I assume they have some kind of mutually beneficial deal there. It's also possible that we did not go for 5 Test at home. I don't recall when we had a 5 test series last in India.

 

[MP2011]

I assume they have some kind of mutually beneficial deal there. It's also possible that we did not go for 5 Test at home. I don't recall when we had a 5 test series last in India.

Our last home series against England had 5 tests in it!

 

[Ashmal]

There is no problem in playing 5 tests, more the merrier!

Problem arises when the other board doesn't reciprocate our gesture of playing number of tests we play at their home.

Not ECB's fault.
It was BCCI who removed 1 test to include some T20s

 

[MP2011]

Not ECB's fault.
It was BCCI who removed 1 test to include some T20s

Thanks for letting me know that. So there you go. It was greed of our board which cut 1 test from the itinerary.

 

[RajBan]

Our last home series against England had 5 tests in it!

Ok. I did not follow that series closely.

 

[RajBan]

Thanks for letting me know that. So there you go. It was greed of our board which cut 1 test from the itinerary.

I think this plan is fine given we have a T20 WC this year in India. England is certainly one of the best T20 sides and a 5 match series should be a good preparation. Its another thing whether our intelligent team management will make the most of it or not to identify reserves and address weaknesses.

 

[MP2011]

I think this plan is fine given we have a T20 WC this year in India. England is certainly one of the best T20 sides and a 5 match series should be a good preparation. Its another thing whether our intelligent team management will make the most of it or not to identify reserves and address weaknesses.

Everyone knows 5 T20s in a series is an overkill, always! Don't justify this madness by citing preparation for T20 WC.

Also considering we lost out on playing tests last year due to Covid, could've done with playing an extra test.

PS: If having a T20 WC this year is the criteria to play more T20s this year, there is a WTC final to be held later this year, why not play an extra test instead?

You and I know this was a purely commercial decision to play extra T20s.

 

[leatherface58]

Fair enough. But you should not pass any judgements on Indian wickets if that's the case. Should you? Makes you look rather silly I'm afraid.

People talking about stuff they barely have any idea about? You described social media in a nutshell, mate.