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Fourth Test between England (669) and India (358 & 425/4) ended in a draw with the hosts leading the five-match series 2-1

As expected stat padder bumrah is running away smh. Wicket fell down, why hasnt he come onto bowl?
 
Does england seriously not have a better batsmen then Crawley? 80+ score once in a 5 match series is criminal
 
RexRex said:
No shame in losing to this strong England team. It's not like we're losing to Bangladesh.
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Ig you forgot that you lost an odi series vs Bangladesh :vk2.

And btw i couldnt give a damn about Pakistan lol. Im not patriotic like some Pakistani posters here. Good luck in trying to effect me by aiming for cheap shots lol.

Whats worrying is that I wonder if their is any shame in betting actual money against your own beloved team 🤷🏻‍♂️🤷🏻‍♂️
 
mominsaigol said:
Ig you forgot that you lost an odi series vs Bangladesh :vk2.

And btw i couldnt give a damn about Pakistan lol. Im not patriotic like some Pakistani posters here. Good luck in trying to effect me by aiming for cheap shots lol.

Whats worrying is that I wonder if their is any shame in betting actual money against your own beloved team 🤷🏻‍♂️🤷🏻‍♂️
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They lost 2 ODI series in Bangladesh (2015 and 2022). :inti

They always have to resort to whataboutism to feel better. Big losers.
 
RKhan_Cricket said:
They only know how to get personal.
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It's because gill is mimicking Kohli not realising that he isnt terrifying.

If kohli got mad at me irl id be terrified. Seriously I would he has that fiery aura.

If gill tried to, id break his fingers. That's the difference.
 
RexRex said:
Liar.

Nothing worse than a fan who abandons his team after defeat and dishonestly pretends he never cared in the first place. Have some self-respect. Glory hunter.
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What proof do you have that I am lying? Based of a KP meme whos known for spreading fake agenda?

Wanna know the proof that I have? Its your message of betting against your own, actual money at that.

Your post is extremely ironic considering this fact.
 
sweep_shot said:
Where is @Buffet? He was calling Bumrah an ATG after a handful of good years. LOL.

These guys are quick to call someone an ATG.

A proper ATG remains the best throughout his career. McGrath, for example. McGrath and Bradman are the undisputed ATGs.
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Oh that guy, his mantra is, post images upon images upon images and speak chatgpt nonsense.

When you post and type that much, how can anyone respond :vk2
 
Haha. The Almighty putting everyone making fun of Kamboj in place via the Duckett wicket.

We won series here in '71 and '86 with such kind of bowlers supporting our spinners.
 
Day 2 - England trail by 133 runs.

England will look to bat through day 3 , and if they manage to do that , they will be in strong position.
 
Fourth Rothesay Test, Emirates Old Trafford (day two of five)

India 358: Sudharsan 61, Jaiswal 58, Pant 54; Stokes 5-72, Archer 3-73

England 225-2: Duckett 94, Crawley 84

England are 133 runs behind

Ben Stokes' first five-wicket haul in eight years and a dizzying opening partnership gave England much the better of the second day of the fourth Test against India at Old Trafford.

Zak Crawley and Ben Duckett flayed some wayward India bowling at a rate of more than five an over in their stand of 166, taking a huge chunk out of India's 358.

For Crawley, his 84 on the ground he made his career-highlight 189 against Australia two years ago was a welcome contribution. Duckett, the premier opener in the world, crunched 94.

Though they fell in the space of two overs, Ollie Pope and Joe Root were able to take England to 225-2, 133 behind.

Stokes claimed three of the six India wickets to fall on Thursday to end with 5-72, while Jofra Archer continued his comeback with 3-73.

England were superb with the ball, though they were partly held up by the bravery of Rishabh Pant.

Pant retired on day one with a suspected broken foot after being struck by Chris Woakes. In scenes of high drama, he hobbled down the stairs to resume his innings on 37 and nudged his way to 54 before Archer spectacularly uprooted his off stump.

Pant is not keeping wicket and India are yet to confirm his injury. It seems likely he will bat in the second innings, when the tourists look set for a battle to stay in the series.

Source: BBC
 
Dominant day for England… game not quite out of sight for India, but in spite of a decent showing for most of the series they keep spewing up the occasional horror session which puts them firmly on the back foot. To have a chance, India need to keep England to under 400 on “moving day” and then bat very well for a >250 lead. But if England bat all day tomorrow—Game Over.
 
James said:
Dominant day for England… game not quite out of sight for India, but in spite of a decent showing for most of the series they keep spewing up the occasional horror session which puts them firmly on the back foot. To have a chance, India need to keep England to under 400 on “moving day” and then bat very well for a >250 lead. But if England bat all day tomorrow—Game Over.
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England batting is too deep. Openers did a killer job. No chance to keep under 400 unless collapse occurs
 
Looking ominous for India.

The bowlers are lacking venom and energy while England has so much batting left. The only way now is to get Jadeja and Sundar to get some grip off the wicket to snatch a few quick wickets.
 
All trolling aside, terrible tour for us. Cannot defend this kind of performance at all. All the hard work done by Kohli in nurturing fast bowlers during his captaincy stint has been undone by this clown Gambhir. We deserve this humiliation.
 
The first hour of play will decide the game. If India don't pick 2-3 wickets quickly, England could bat India out of the game tomorrow
 
Imagine checking in to the Hilton Garden Inn at Old Trafford, and this is the view from your hotel room balcony

1753403762798.png
 
Wasim Ghulam said:
Forget about English Front Line Bowlers , Stokes ( done and dusted as bowler before series began ) out bowling Supposed ATG Bumrah is highlight of this series
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Indians dont realise that their media propaganda always backfires.

All this trolling towards Root, Stokes, Travis Head, Harry Brooks etc etc. The irony is that a majority of these boys wouldnt even have a career if it wasnt for India 🤣🤣.

So many complaints towards Root surpassing Tendulkar, remind me how many runs India gave root again?
 
England is already in a good position. They should be looking to get at least 150 run lead to take the game away from india...
 
Stoke has definitely been the difference between the two teams for these conditions in this series. (Just like Ashwin, Jadeja, Axar in India) A 4th seamer of that quality is always gold and the balance he brings to the team... India also has their set of alrounders but they are not good enough for these conditions... If Stokes had not raised to the occasion, India would have definitely won the previous match and would be in better position this match... Stokes looked out of sorts in first two test matches, but he came out of the bazball madness & adapted to good old style test cricket (work had with ball and bat)...
 
RamLakhan said:
Stoke has definitely been the difference between the two teams for these conditions in this series. (Just like Ashwin, Jadeja, Axar in India) A 4th seamer of that quality is always gold and the balance he brings to the team... India also has their set of alrounders but they are not good enough for these conditions... If Stokes had not raised to the occasion, India would have definitely won the previous match and would be in better position this match... Stokes looked out of sorts in first two test matches, but he came out of the bazball madness & adapted to good old style test cricket (work had with ball and bat)...
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The main difference has been batting. Excluding the 2nd test which is an outlier, England batters are just better in test cricket in sena pitches.

Otherwise bowling has been = excluding Bumrah..Although in this test india's bowling this 200% weaker thats for sure.
 
I knew it, their was no way Gill could ever surpass the Don.

Donald Bradman record of most runs in a series just can't under any circumstances be surpassed. He's the goat for a reason
 
mominsaigol said:
The main difference has been batting. Excluding the 2nd test which is an outlier, England batters are just better in test cricket in sena pitches.

Otherwise bowling has been = excluding Bumrah..Although in this test india's bowling this 200% weaker thats for sure.
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Cricket is also about confidence and seizing the momentum... Do you think Mc.Grath, Gillespie & Warne were bowling trash against Laxman & Dravid during that innings? It is just hypnotizing the opposition by seizing the momentum... Any game (usually) will have talented players in the both the sides, only combination & confidence can help one team attack/dominate the other side! Bumrah/Siraj would get their tail up if they find such quality 4th seamer (Stokes)... India just has Nitish Reddy, Thakur who may pick odd wickets/breakthroughs here & there, but they are not consistent enough... Forget consistency they cannot even play all the matches due to fitness issues OR sheer lack of skills/confidence!

So I iterate again Stokes is the key for what kind of balance he brings... That confidence rubs on batting or bowling or fielding or catcing or whatever.... Cricket or any game is basically first about confidence/momentum...

Even India can bat long, strong and dominant way as they did in 2nd test match, if things fall in place... Even they have the resources... Even their bowlers can come hard like they did in 2nd test, when there is scoreboard pressure on opposition... (Akashdeep suddenly looked threatening). All that happens only if there is perfect balance & you seize the moment... Pitches/conditions are more or less the same, in fact Lords suited more to Indians than the other 3 venues so far, they lost the toss (can't blame for that) and also they were unable to hold their nerves in key moments (improper balance has played a role here...)

With the kind of confidence growing in England Team & Captain Stokes, I won't be surprized if Stokes hits a century too in one of the remaining innings... That's what confidence can do...

India has two main issues... Lack of balance and also lack of experience (Rahul, Bumrah, Pant, Jadeja & Siraj are the only experienced and seasoned players in the team), and they are playing away (it is OK to be dominant at home with inexperieced side as we can see lesser exprienced guys in England like Brook, Smith, etc are able to perform strongly...)

Going forward India should rethink their strategy in SENA tests... If they don't win this series (most likely) OR even if they can't end it at least 3-2, then they must think of playing 3 proper seamers (at least the 3rd seamer should be an assured seamer even if he is not an alrounder/can't bat) and go with 1 wicket-taking spinner (like Kuldeep or anyone)... Need to get rid of bits & pieces. Nitish Reddy, Thakur, Sundar, etc... Well they don't have confidence in giving ball to Sundar even after he did well in the previous match... That clearly indicates that he is also a bits & peice guy... He should be competing with Jadeja for a place in the side, and not play together! He should raise his game accordingly! A specialist would bowl regardless of his form and match situation. Same logic applies to specialist batsman... Jadeja qualifies as a proper alrounder OR at least batting-alrounder for SENA, but his bowling cannot be effective like Stokes in SENA conditions.

Hence India should play 3 proper seamers + 1 wicket-taking spinner + Jadeja (his bowling should only be bonus OR for giving break to main bowlers), because it is too much to ask for 4 full-fledged seamers, whether they can bat & form a good tail OR not, first of all we don't have that much quality - test quality seam bowlers, but we can definitely find/prepare a wicket-taking spinner! Reason for this is a) India has better chance to produce quality spinner than a quality seamer with the resources we have b) SENA teams are good at handling seamers even if they are of good quality, so we should surprise them / tackle them with a spinner, just like SENA teams usually play 1 seamer more & 1 spinner less when they come to India and try with that combination (that's what comes naturally for them!)

India should stop stacking their team with these bits & piece players, which may look fancy on paper, but it won't give results... Unless we find a proper seam bowling alrounder (at least like Pandya - yes he is good & perfect at least for LOIs, he is gold there. He played a crucial part in that T20 finals to help Bumrah raise his game, just like Stokes is doing with his test team! And I personally think India would have won ODI World Cup if Pandya had not missed that game!) we should stick to 3 seamers & 1 proper spinner & Jadeja/Sundar (let these two guys compete for a single spot. Sundar is not working on his game, he is being lazy, thinking that he can anyhow be in the side because management is hellbent on bits & peice policy! He should be made to work hard on his batting & also learn to bowl in any situation/any condition and be effective... Jadeja is doing that... He picked a wicket in this innings too... So he is better than Sundar at the moment)

Sorry if I posted a long reply... But here I am neither blindly supporting my team NOR I am accusing any opposition (and more importantly didn't bring Pakistan Cricket into this), so hopefully you will appreciate my analysis :) At least our Indian PPers may find this post useful!
 
RamLakhan said:
Cricket is also about confidence and seizing the momentum... Do you think Mc.Grath, Gillespie & Warne were bowling trash against Laxman & Dravid during that innings? It is just hypnotizing the opposition by seizing the momentum... Any game (usually) will have talented players in the both the sides, only combination & confidence can help one team attack/dominate the other side! Bumrah/Siraj would get their tail up if they find such quality 4th seamer (Stokes)... India just has Nitish Reddy, Thakur who may pick odd wickets/breakthroughs here & there, but they are not consistent enough... Forget consistency they cannot even play all the matches due to fitness issues OR sheer lack of skills/confidence!

So I iterate again Stokes is the key for what kind of balance he brings... That confidence rubs on batting or bowling or fielding or catcing or whatever.... Cricket or any game is basically first about confidence/momentum...

Even India can bat long, strong and dominant way as they did in 2nd test match, if things fall in place... Even they have the resources... Even their bowlers can come hard like they did in 2nd test, when there is scoreboard pressure on opposition... (Akashdeep suddenly looked threatening). All that happens only if there is perfect balance & you seize the moment... Pitches/conditions are more or less the same, in fact Lords suited more to Indians than the other 3 venues so far, they lost the toss (can't blame for that) and also they were unable to hold their nerves in key moments (improper balance has played a role here...)

With the kind of confidence growing in England Team & Captain Stokes, I won't be surprized if Stokes hits a century too in one of the remaining innings... That's what confidence can do...

India has two main issues... Lack of balance and also lack of experience (Rahul, Bumrah, Pant, Jadeja & Siraj are the only experienced and seasoned players in the team), and they are playing away (it is OK to be dominant at home with inexperieced side as we can see lesser exprienced guys in England like Brook, Smith, etc are able to perform strongly...)

Going forward India should rethink their strategy in SENA tests... If they don't win this series (most likely) OR even if they can't end it at least 3-2, then they must think of playing 3 proper seamers (at least the 3rd seamer should be an assured seamer even if he is not an alrounder/can't bat) and go with 1 wicket-taking spinner (like Kuldeep or anyone)... Need to get rid of bits & pieces. Nitish Reddy, Thakur, Sundar, etc... Well they don't have confidence in giving ball to Sundar even after he did well in the previous match... That clearly indicates that he is also a bits & peice guy... He should be competing with Jadeja for a place in the side, and not play together! He should raise his game accordingly! A specialist would bowl regardless of his form and match situation. Same logic applies to specialist batsman... Jadeja qualifies as a proper alrounder OR at least batting-alrounder for SENA, but his bowling cannot be effective like Stokes in SENA conditions.

Hence India should play 3 proper seamers + 1 wicket-taking spinner + Jadeja (his bowling should only be bonus OR for giving break to main bowlers), because it is too much to ask for 4 full-fledged seamers, whether they can bat & form a good tail OR not, first of all we don't have that much quality - test quality seam bowlers, but we can definitely find/prepare a wicket-taking spinner! Reason for this is a) India has better chance to produce quality spinner than a quality seamer with the resources we have b) SENA teams are good at handling seamers even if they are of good quality, so we should surprise them / tackle them with a spinner, just like SENA teams usually play 1 seamer more & 1 spinner less when they come to India and try with that combination (that's what comes naturally for them!)

India should stop stacking their team with these bits & piece players, which may look fancy on paper, but it won't give results... Unless we find a proper seam bowling alrounder (at least like Pandya - yes he is good & perfect at least for LOIs, he is gold there. He played a crucial part in that T20 finals to help Bumrah raise his game, just like Stokes is doing with his test team! And I personally think India would have won ODI World Cup if Pandya had not missed that game!) we should stick to 3 seamers & 1 proper spinner & Jadeja/Sundar (let these two guys compete for a single spot. Sundar is not working on his game, he is being lazy, thinking that he can anyhow be in the side because management is hellbent on bits & peice policy! He should be made to work hard on his batting & also learn to bowl in any situation/any condition and be effective... Jadeja is doing that... He picked a wicket in this innings too... So he is better than Sundar at the moment)

Sorry if I posted a long reply... But here I am neither blindly supporting my team NOR I am accusing any opposition (and more importantly didn't bring Pakistan Cricket into this), so hopefully you will appreciate my analysis :) At least our Indian PPers may find this post useful!
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Sorry if I posted a long reply

Naw you are the only indian poster so far who has been able to counter me by speaking my language lol. I also post long replies :vk2

Anyway I don't need to reply to any of this as I agree. This is POTW material.
 
mominsaigol said:
I knew it, their was no way Gill could ever surpass the Don.

Donald Bradman record of most runs in a series just can't under any circumstances be surpassed. He's the goat for a reason
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Probably Gill was given the captaincy too early... Bumrah should have captained for 1 or 2 years. Gill got over-confident and started to behave like Kohli's successor... Even Kohli didn't start sledging in his early years, he was composed... I think he started to do it more only after becoming captain (and he got captaincy after a long time... He played under Dhoni)
 
RamLakhan said:
Probably Gill was given the captaincy too early... Bumrah should have captained for 1 or 2 years. Gill got over-confident and started to behave like Kohli's successor... Even Kohli didn't start sledging in his early years, he was composed... I think he started to do it more only after becoming captain (and he got captaincy after a long time... He played under Dhoni)
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Bumrah can't. This is why I refuse to place him > Wasim let alone Mcgrath.

Playing the 4th test has exposed him. He is bowling harmlessly at 130-137KPH and bowled 13 overs yesterday only. Even if he picks a 5fer today after rest is given you can tell his stamina is weak.

Otherwise Bumrah as a bowler skills wise is > Wasim, = Mcgrath and Below Marshall. But that is only if he is at absolute peak which he hardly ever is unless its the first test.

This is his issue, his stamina is that of a toothpick. Otherwise yes he'd be a terrific captain if he could actually play 2 consecutive tests without the risk of being out in a coma.

I could tell during BGT that he kept and kept declining game by game.

1st game he was killer, 2nd, 3rd and 4th still lethal but not as much. 5th game was only due to the crazy pitch but it was clear he was finished and spent.

Sane case in this series. The ego of playing the 4th game in a decider is costing him.

His skills being > Wasim doesnt mean he is > Wasim as a whole.
 
James said:
Dominant day for England… game not quite out of sight for India, but in spite of a decent showing for most of the series they keep spewing up the occasional horror session which puts them firmly on the back foot. To have a chance, India need to keep England to under 400 on “moving day” and then bat very well for a >250 lead. But if England bat all day tomorrow—Game Over.
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Looking at ENG's batting depth , restricting them to 450 would be a miracle and forecast for day 3 is sunny so should be good batting conditions !
Btw , day 5 looks a bit dicey with drizzle/light-rain forecast from 10 am till almost 5 pm .
 
mominsaigol said:
Bumrah can't. This is why I refuse to place him > Wasim let alone Mcgrath.

Playing the 4th test has exposed him. He is bowling harmlessly at 130-137KPH and bowled 13 overs yesterday only. Even if he picks a 5fer today after rest is given you can tell his stamina is weak.

Otherwise Bumrah as a bowler skills wise is > Wasim, = Mcgrath and Below Marshall. But that is only if he is at absolute peak which he hardly ever is unless its the first test.

This is his issue, his stamina is that of a toothpick. Otherwise yes he'd be a terrific captain if he could actually play 2 consecutive tests without the risk of being out in a coma.

I could tell during BGT that he kept and kept declining game by game.

1st game he was killer, 2nd, 3rd and 4th still lethal but not as much. 5th game was only due to the crazy pitch but it was clear he was finished and spent.

Sane case in this series. The ego of playing the 4th game in a decider is costing him.

His skills being > Wasim doesnt mean he is > Wasim as a whole.
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You may disagree (but I respect that), I still think Bumrah can be more effective under a better captain (who uses him in a better way). Rohit Sharma used him in the worst possible way (in the middle 3 games he captained). 1st game Bumrah captained did a killer job (one of the finest exhibition of utilizing fast bowling resources, the way he rotated the main 3 seamers... Thats why I tell just 3 seamers are enough for India in SENA. Nitish hardly bowled in that match!), 2nd to 4th game rubbish captaincy - besides Rohit being burden on the team as batsman! By the 5th match, Bumrah was exhausted and Australia seized the opportunity...

In the given conditions I am not sure who should be the captain - Pant? Jadeja? Rahul? But I will pick Bumrah because he has proven with that 1 match, the way we won it (especially after the NZ debacle at home!) Also no worries about his fitness... He will use himself in a better way (in short spells), even if he doesn't play in a match, he can still guide the team from the dressing room/ as a drinks-boy!

And this is the first notable series (ongoing England series) where his fitness has been questioned... In Australia he played all the matches and broke down finally... Back in India though he was part of the humiliation against NZ, he was not the centre figure because it was the batsmen who let us down (and smartness of NZ whose spinners outbowled Indian Spinners, and the main issue was India's stubborness to stick with old guys & useless captain!)

I still think Bumrah can be effective if he is part of a proper bowling unit, where others also are equally effective... Ambrose, Mc.Grath, Steyn, etc, did what they did, because they were not the lone power in their team, they worked with a pretty-strong bowling units where others also were equally good if not better! Even they were off-color in some innings, but others clicked on that day... Similar thing should happen with India... Bumrah should not be fully burdened, it can affect both his fitness & form...

India should play with 3 seam + 1 spin + Jadeja/Sundar combination which I proposed... Nitish should play only if he can do the role of a specialist batsman (ELSE replace him with a proper specialist batsman) Thakur should play only if he can do the role of a specialist bowler (he should be ideally competing with Prasidh/Akashdeep/Kamboj/Arshdeep/Rana for the 3rd seamer spot) Sundar should play only if he can be an improvement over Jadeja OR if he can be a premier spinner bowling in all conditions & all situations... These three guys are blocking a spot for Specialist Batsman & Specialist Spinner.

And the attention is shifted towards Bumrah, because he is our main player and he is expected to perform in every innings, every spell... (People will forgive Pant - because he is like this - inconsistent, bit lazy right from the beginning, People will forgive Gill - because he is new, but they won't forgive Bumrah - expectations will raise!) But in reality more than Bumrah, the underlying issue is the upset in the balance (within the team). Sundar, Nitish, Thakur are enjoying the opportunity and making backdoor entries into the team...

Okay, I agree they can be effective in some matches, say if we are offered with a green pitch, then we can play Nitish/Thakur particularly in that match to surprise the opposition. Also we can play Sundar (additional spinner) if the pitch is too dry like in Lords... But they should all not be playing in all matches as default choices... They can be in the squad and play only when required... They should be like a surprise package to opposition (like how we surprised Australia in Gabba with unknown team/players) so that they are not prepared for them... If we keep playing them in every match, opposition can easily tackle them and also these players won't have the diverse skillset to modify their game dynamically... Test match is for specialists... That's why Stokes (a proper alrounder) and Archer (a proper seamer) could contribute coming after loss of form & loss of fitness/injury respectively...

India are making this mistake, hopefully they should rectificy... I know it is not possible (not good either) to change the captaincy now... (Gill should be given a long run, once the decision is made, unless he fails completely in multiple series). Also usually coach cannot be changed, they should complete their tenure once chosen (unless there is total mishap like it happened in Kumble/Kohli regime). But India should definitely change their team selection, tactics & methods (in coaching & captaincy) Gill should calm down (should not copy Kohli), Gambhir needs to be flexible and understand the need for specialists in test cricket (In LOIs his ploy may/will work)
 
RamLakhan said:
You may disagree (but I respect that), I still think Bumrah can be more effective under a better captain (who uses him in a better way). Rohit Sharma used him in the worst possible way (in the middle 3 games he captained). 1st game Bumrah captained did a killer job (one of the finest exhibition of utilizing fast bowling resources, the way he rotated the main 3 seamers... Thats why I tell just 3 seamers are enough for India in SENA. Nitish hardly bowled in that match!), 2nd to 4th game rubbish captaincy - besides Rohit being burden on the team as batsman! By the 5th match, Bumrah was exhausted and Australia seized the opportunity...

In the given conditions I am not sure who should be the captain - Pant? Jadeja? Rahul? But I will pick Bumrah because he has proven with that 1 match, the way we won it (especially after the NZ debacle at home!) Also no worries about his fitness... He will use himself in a better way (in short spells), even if he doesn't play in a match, he can still guide the team from the dressing room/ as a drinks-boy!

And this is the first notable series (ongoing England series) where his fitness has been questioned... In Australia he played all the matches and broke down finally... Back in India though he was part of the humiliation against NZ, he was not the centre figure because it was the batsmen who let us down (and smartness of NZ whose spinners outbowled Indian Spinners, and the main issue was India's stubborness to stick with old guys & useless captain!)

I still think Bumrah can be effective if he is part of a proper bowling unit, where others also are equally effective... Ambrose, Mc.Grath, Steyn, etc, did what they did, because they were not the lone power in their team, they worked with a pretty-strong bowling units where others also were equally good if not better! Even they were off-color in some innings, but others clicked on that day... Similar thing should happen with India... Bumrah should not be fully burdened, it can affect both his fitness & form...

India should play with 3 seam + 1 spin + Jadeja/Sundar combination which I proposed... Nitish should play only if he can do the role of a specialist batsman (ELSE replace him with a proper specialist batsman) Thakur should play only if he can do the role of a specialist bowler (he should be ideally competing with Prasidh/Akashdeep/Kamboj/Arshdeep/Rana for the 3rd seamer spot) Sundar should play only if he can be an improvement over Jadeja OR if he can be a premier spinner bowling in all conditions & all situations... These three guys are blocking a spot for Specialist Batsman & Specialist Spinner.

And the attention is shifted towards Bumrah, because he is our main player and he is expected to perform in every innings, every spell... (People will forgive Pant - because he is like this - inconsistent, bit lazy right from the beginning, People will forgive Gill - because he is new, but they won't forgive Bumrah - expectations will raise!) But in reality more than Bumrah, the underlying issue is the upset in the balance (within the team). Sundar, Nitish, Thakur are enjoying the opportunity and making backdoor entries into the team...

Okay, I agree they can be effective in some matches, say if we are offered with a green pitch, then we can play Nitish/Thakur particularly in that match to surprise the opposition. Also we can play Sundar (additional spinner) if the pitch is too dry like in Lords... But they should all not be playing in all matches as default choices... They can be in the squad and play only when required... They should be like a surprise package to opposition (like how we surprised Australia in Gabba with unknown team/players) so that they are not prepared for them... If we keep playing them in every match, opposition can easily tackle them and also these players won't have the diverse skillset to modify their game dynamically... Test match is for specialists... That's why Stokes (a proper alrounder) and Archer (a proper seamer) could contribute coming after loss of form & loss of fitness/injury respectively...

India are making this mistake, hopefully they should rectificy... I know it is not possible (not good either) to change the captaincy now... (Gill should be given a long run, once the decision is made, unless he fails completely in multiple series). Also usually coach cannot be changed, they should complete their tenure once chosen (unless there is total mishap like it happened in Kumble/Kohli regime). But India should definitely change their team selection, tactics & methods (in coaching & captaincy) Gill should calm down (should not copy Kohli), Gambhir needs to be flexible and understand the need for specialists in test cricket (In LOIs his ploy may/will work)
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The fact remains that in the 2nd test india bowled better without Bumrah then with him included.

The better bowling unit excuse doesn't exactly fly. Its not like mcgrath had wonders either.

India ace batter averaged 70 vs Aus when mchrath didn't play and owned aus yet with mchrath included he avg 36 overall and 26 directly vs mcgrath. And india was basically mchrath's bunny at the time excluding 2001.

He has zero stamina, his venom fades after 1 or 2 games. Him being captain would entail he would either have to play all games or rest himself in which case you'd need a captain for 2 tests anyway.

Its why india opted for someone who can just captain all 5 matched instead
 
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Can India chase down 193 to go 2-1 in the 5-match Test series against England?
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77
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RedwoodOriginal
RedwoodOriginal
Ball Blazer
  • Poll Poll
Will a Test series loss to India be the end of captaincy for Ben Stokes?
2
Replies
128
Views
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mominsaigol
mominsaigol
The Bald Eagle
England (387 & 192) defeat India (387 & 170) by 22 runs to take 2-1 lead in the 5-match Test series
31 32 33
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Views
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globetrotter
G
The Bald Eagle
  • Poll Poll
Pakistan (178/7) defeat Bangladesh (104) comfortably by 74 runs in the 3rd T20I to earn a consolation win in the series (1-2)
2 3
Replies
230
Views
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salman24
salman24
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