How do you feel England will fare in India?

[Crafty_Indian]

Today there was a tour match between BCB XI and England's ODI team.Although one shouldn't be reading too much from such an outing and try to gauge their performance by extrapolating their skills and plays into another format entirely.

If one goes by the scores of the English players in today's match, you tend to feel that only a very select few individuals carry the necessary skills to play the turning ball as evidentlly seen.Apart from Root,Hameed(?) and Cook which other batsmen in their team actually possesses this particular skill set to actually challenge India in Indian conditions...

Bairstow,Stokes et al feel a little too brittle.Especially in the absence of a maverick like Pietersen and their skillful spinning du, can they actually put up a decent fight??

 

[Napa]

We are waiting for the Poms. We will make them sorry they were ever born

Actually I think the English will be our major test, more so than the Australians (who really sucked in SL). After all the English did beat us the last time they were here. If we can beat them our grip on the #1 ranking is secure for at least a year.

 

[sensible-indian-fan]

Can't judge test team from ODI.

Let's wait for NZ series to get over.

It all depends on what kind of spinners England bring to India and what is Anderson's form.

 

[sensible-indian-fan]

But to be honest, NZ spinners were supposed to give us the biggest test and they were played off like it was no big deal.

We underperformed with the bat (make no mistake) but you expected more from them.

A few of the wickets to them were gifted too.

 

[Slog]

It's four match series

I think India will dominate in score line but matches will be closer than what the final series score line will suggest. Kinda like England in UAE in 2012 where they competed well and had the upper hand in periods of all the matches

 

[sensible-indian-fan]

I am pretty sure Monty will magically get fine...come over and try to screw us over as much as possible.

Sick of the Monty Monster.

 

[amit]

England will lose atleast 3 of the 5 tests

 

[Syed1]

4-0 to England.


Game over for India's number aspirations.

 

[HussainRx8]

Does it matter who wins on these doctored pitches?

 

[Crafty_Indian]

Does it matter who wins on these doctored pitches?

It's been the case normally if India win in India others just complain that they were doctored pitches.It is nothing new really.

And don't even go there coz lots of threads have been created to troll on this.It will be a waste of your time really.If you can't logically put up your arguments you might as well not try also.

 

[Spidy201]

I am pretty sure Monty will magically get fine...come over and try to screw us over as much as possible.

Sick of the Monty Monster.

I hope Monty gets 10 wickets each innings but India wins

Monty bhai best of luck

 

[Crafty_Indian]

Also mainly I was really trying to get a decent look on their middle order really.Because I feel their bowlers leaving aside woakes and anderson might actually not give us that much of a trouble.So a few thoughts on their lower middle order.Will it actually put up much of a fight in these conditions more so than their Indian counterparts not withstanding their multiple heroics in recent times on their home soil.

 

[sensible-indian-fan]

I hope Monty gets 10 wickets each innings but India wins

Monty bhai best of luck

Haha.....good one.

---

Monty bhai may be a traitor but he is OUR traitor so we should support him.

 

[Buffet]

Indian batting doesn't look solid to me. NZ has played poorly on spin friendly and pace friendly tracks. Indians bowled better than them on both tracks. Indians won by big margins, but they batted well only once. Lower order bailed them out many times and it may not go the same way in future.

 

[HussainRx8]

It's been the case normally if India win in India others just complain that they were doctored pitches.It is nothing new really.

And don't even go there coz lots of threads have been created to troll on this.It will be a waste of your time really.If you can't logically put up your arguments you might as well not try also.

It is a very logical argument, sir. Unfortunately, home wins don't matter in Test cricket anymore. So, to say that India would whitewash England in India is not saying much. Same rule applies to other teams.

 

[WhenSultansBowled]

Indian spinning duo are beasts at home. So England will have to play out of their skins to scratch a win.

I back India to win comfortably.

 

[Crafty_Indian]

It is a very logical argument, sir. Unfortunately, home wins don't matter in Test cricket anymore. So, to say that India would whitewash England in India is not saying much. Same rule applies to other teams.

And sir I don't argue with that fact at all. It's just a case that they were the only side in so many years to actually win a series against us on our soil and hence the anticipation.

 

[sensible-indian-fan]

Since I started watching cricket, this is the first time I am seeing Indian bowling being the main actors and the batting being the side show (in home + Asia + WI tests).

In 90s, we Indian fans were like please somehow take 20 wickets and our batting will do the rest.

Now the same fans are like please somehow score some runs and our bowling will do the rest.

Kumble at home was a true beast in 90s but talking about perception - the overall attack then wasn't as well rounded.

 

[Crafty_Indian]

Can some people in the know actually shed some light on their spin playing skills?

I can however see them getting very good 1st innings totals so a lot depends on if our top order bats carry some of their lessons taught in this series over to the next one to actually post some good scores and not be so heavily reliant on our lower order to bail the team out.

 

[Crafty_Indian]

Since I started watching cricket, this is the first time I am seeing Indian bowling being the main actors and the batting being the side show (in home + Asia + WI tests).

In 90s, we Indian fans were like please somehow take 20 wickets and our batting will do the rest.

Now the same fans are like please somehow score some runs and our bowling will do the rest.

Kumble at home was a true beast in 90s but talking about perception - the overall attack then wasn't as well rounded.

Lol I totally can get that role reversal u hint at.

 

[HitWicket]

Also mainly I was really trying to get a decent look on their middle order really.Because I feel their bowlers leaving aside woakes and anderson might actually not give us that much of a trouble.So a few thoughts on their lower middle order.Will it actually put up much of a fight in these conditions more so than their Indian counterparts not withstanding their multiple heroics in recent times on their home soil.

My views on each likely to be in the starting XI :

Cook - Proven brilliant player of spin, should do well and hopefully hold the batting together on a fair few occasions.

Hameed - Pretty unknown quantity really. Seen very little of him so a bit of a wild card. Could come out and impress us all or alternatively be a bit of a flop.

Root - One of the best batsmen in the world, has appeared so far to be a pretty good player of spin, just needs to be careful about going back to the one that slides on.

Ballance - With his technique I can't see him doing much at all in these conditions, hence why I'd instead go for...

Duckett - Another slight wild card but a counter attacking batsman, appears to have done well on the rare spin friendly tracks he's faced in county cricket this season and won't hold back on trying to keep scoring runs at a very good rate. Could be his undoing though if it doesn't go to plan.

Stokes - Quite a big test for him in the batting department, has shown frailties against spin previously, but appeared to be showing some new found maturity towards the end of the summer that may put him in slightly better stead.

Bairstow - Another player who will be tested given the conditions, but in my view has shown a very good ability to learn pretty quickly. When it became clear during the Pakistan series that there was a few repeating technical problems when facing Yasir he cleared them up almost immediately by either adjusting his technique or removing a shot from his selection.

Moeen - Free flowing with the bat so may have success from time to time but may also need to apply himself a bit more occasionally.

Woakes - Has a solid technique with the bat and could potentially score some handy runs lower down the order (would be batting at 8 on my team sheet). Should be looking to establish himself as someone capable of being a genuine pace bowling all rounder though when Stokes is not available.

Rashid - Not someone to forget given his very good domestic record, could also play a part in a few rearguard efforts to get to a good total.

Broad - I give up with his batting...

Wood - Should probably come in ahead of Broad in my view if he gets a game/is fit.

 

[Crafty_Indian]

Thank you for that insightful post. So really looking forward to the coming matches. Seems like the frailities of the Indian batting lineup is actually going to make the matches really interesting.

Can't really predict anything until the matches actually get underway. The new players could really add some exciting undertones to this series.

 

[Bewal Express]

If the pitches are like the NZ matches, then the toss will play a big part. If Ind win the toss in the 4 games they will win all 4 but if the toss is 50/50, then England will have more of a chance. The other big error by England is not taking Bell, who although pretty average, is still better than what they have in the Middle order.

 

[TQ89]

I would give them 50/50 chance because Indian players surprisingly are not as efficient against spin as they were in the past. Barring Vijay & Pujara, the rest of the guys gift their wickets after some disciplined bowling.

Same for England, Barring Cook i don't see any english guy capable of scoring against Indian bowling attack.

Hope its a little bit competitive unlike the NZ series

 

[Hawkeye]

On broken/underprepared rank turners, Ind will win.

On sporting turn tracks, it's pretty even. Can go any way.

 

[Third_Umpire]

England should rest Anderson, Broad, Woakes, Finn etc for this tour. They'll bowl 2-3 overs, before never being needed again on those pathetic pitches.

 

[Salman CricBio]

Moeen was handy even in the seaming conditions of England. He might take wickets on spinning tracks if India are planning to make rank turners. Also, Adil Rashid is now a much better player. England has batting till no. 9.

So in my opinion, England will win.

 

[Boom boom legend]

Although I know it will affect the number one ranking, I am hoping and expecting India to give England a real pasting. England love to hype their players and when teams come to England, the pundits are out in full force predicting a nice easy whitewash for England.

Well the shoe is on the other foot this time and I cant wait for Jadeja and Ashwin to rip through the brittle England lineup. Cant wait to see the looks on the faces of Botham, Lloyd and the rest when they get beat comfortably.

Also hoping for Virat to get back in good touch and revenge them poor figures he had against them. One of my favourite players and should punish the average England spin attack.

 

[Barragan]

Wouldn't be surprised if Eng beat Ind.

Mooen on these pitches will be much more threatening than usual and if Rashid gets the ball to drift, he'll be a big threat.

Cook and Root will be the key batsmen (pretty obvious), whilst Vince is also capable of sticking around on these tracks.

 

[The_Odd_One]

Would be a good series to watch. England batting is much better than NZ who I think is missing McCallum big time. Also, English pacers are better.

 

[Napa]

England has batting till no. 9.

So in my opinion, England will win.

Whereas India has batting till #11, with Shami having a half century to his credit in Tests.

So in my opinion, India will win

 

[Napa]

Since I started watching cricket, this is the first time I am seeing Indian bowling being the main actors and the batting being the side show (in home + Asia + WI tests).

In 90s, we Indian fans were like please somehow take 20 wickets and our batting will do the rest.

<b>Now the same fans are like please somehow score some runs and our bowling will do the rest.</b>

Kumble at home was a true beast in 90s but talking about perception - the overall attack then wasn't as well rounded.

Indian batting will be fine. We have to pick six out of Vijay, Murli, Pujara, Rahane, Kohli, Rohit, Gambhir and Pandey. All these batsmen are potentially ATGs. We just need to keep Dhawan out and choose the 6 who are in form. And after the six come Ashwin, Saha and Jadeja. Can't see this batting lineup not delivering consistently.

 

[Sachin136]

Indian batting will be fine. We have to pick six out of Vijay, Murli, Pujara, Rahane, Kohli, Rohit, Gambhir and Pandey. All these batsmen are potentially ATGs. We just need to keep Dhawan out and choose the 6 who are in form. And after the six come Ashwin, Saha and Jadeja. Can't see this batting lineup not delivering consistently.

Vijay, Pujara, Rohit, Gambhir and Pandey (truthfully Rahane and Kohli too) are far from being potential ATGs.

Vijay, Rahane and Kohli are some of the best batsmen in the world though, so I wouldn't be too worried about India's batting.

 

[Chrish]

It will be a closely fought series.. English aren't hopeless against spin, especially cook. And their batting depth is ridiculous (much like India's)

Only thing is they don't have a genuine spinner. If they get Monty which I doubt they will, it will be closer than most people would think

 

[Rayyman]

I think it will be 2-2.

 

[Chrish]

Indian batting doesn't look solid to me. NZ has played poorly on spin friendly and pace friendly tracks. Indians bowled better than them on both tracks. Indians won by big margins, but they batted well only once. Lower order bailed them out many times and it may not go the same way in future.

India and England have the same strengths/ weaknesses in batting department. Fragile top/ middle order while resilient lower order which saves team most of the times

Everything will come down to which spinners English will pick

 

[Chrish]

Overall cook and Pujara are the best players of spin on either side

 

[Bilal7]

Here is how I see England's batting:

1) Cook - Will give you 40 runs.

2) and 3) Hameed and Duckett - Will give you 50 runs between them.

4) and 5) Root and Bairstow - Will give you 60 runs between them

6) and 7) Stokes and Ali - Will give you 50 runs between them.

8) and 9) Woakes and Rashid - Will give you 30 runs between them.

10 and 11) Broad and Anderson - Will give you 10 runs.

So that comes out to 240 runs in an innings, on a rank-turner. England's batting depth should keep them in the hunt and their bowling is seriously packed too:

New ball: Anderson and Broad
Old ball: Stokes and Woakes.
Spin: Ali and Rashid.
Part-time: Root.

I can definitely see England winning a couple of tests. Kohli has been extremely lucky with the toss otherwise India would have lost a few tests in the recent past.

 

[Justcrazy]

Kohli has been extremely lucky with the toss otherwise India would have lost a few tests in the recent past.

Australia won all Toss I guess , but still lost test matches last time.

Key is to put good first innings total and to get Ashwin out cheaply.

 

[Bilal7]

Australia won all Toss I guess , but still lost test matches last time.

Key is to put good first innings total and to get Ashwin out cheaply.

Australia are rubbish. South Africa and New Zealand have been the unlucky ones.

 

[PakLFC]

India will win it easily. At best England may have a few goo sessions, nothing more. They have a decent chance in the one dayers though.

 

[Bilal7]

Oh, by the way... England are getting a grand total of 0 practice matches for this tour. India are the most phattu team playing test cricket at present. Even Bangladesh gave the English a practice game.

 

[Chrish]

Well they are playing BD so good enough practice. Not a valid excuse

 

[Chrish]

Loosing toss, dropped catches etc are part of game so it's pretty silly if they even come into argument

 

[sensible-indian-fan]

If Indians put runs on board (par score), I can see England struggling.

Honestly NZ had it too easy this series. Kolkata pitch felt more like advantage NZ than India.

Kanpur we got a 500 first innings track but our batsmen screwed up and made it into a hard fought game atleast for the first 2 days.

Its our batting that we need to sort without depending a lot on tail which won't click always.

 

[sensible-indian-fan]

English batting doesn't have a lot of quality in spin playing ability barring a few but it is resilient.

So gotta bat well.

 

[JattMaula]

Ashwin needs to do a Sanga on Cook.

 

[AamchiMumbaikar]

Jaddu will trouble Root a lot. Might pick him up multiple times through the series.

When was the last time we played a 5 test match series in India? :thinking

 

[JattMaula]

Jaddu will trouble Root a lot. Might pick him up multiple times through the series.

When was the last time we played a 5 test match series in India? :thinking

Jaddu needs to do a Clark on Root

 

[Junaids]

I am pretty sure Monty will magically get fine...come over and try to screw us over as much as possible.

Sick of the Monty Monster.

Sadly, it's all over for Monty.

But I think that Gareth Batty and Zafar Ansari will be a real handful on turning tracks, and we bat extremely deep. Remember too that Anderson and Broad have had two successive superb series in the UAE, where they have been virtually impossible to score off.

1. Cook
2. Hameed
3. Root
4. Bairstow (wk)
5. Stokes
6. Moeen (OB)
7. Ansari (SLA)
8. Rashid (LBG)
9. Broad
10. Batty (OB)
11. Anderson

I think that that's a really strong team. Three quick bowlers and four spinners, but 7 proper batsmen and 2 bowlers who can hit Test centuries.

 

[Xeeebon]

After bd series it will be clear whether the English team will do good or bad in India....

 

[Arham_PakFan]

They will compete and won't be rolled over.

 

[JattMaula]

Better than NZ and Aussies.

 

[Ellipsism]

They won't crumble against spin unlike NZ and AU. England might when a test or two but India won't roll over England with ease.

 

[hadi123]

i reckon england will cope better than NZ have

 

[AamchiMumbaikar]

Oh, by the way... England are getting a grand total of 0 practice matches for this tour. India are the most phattu team playing test cricket at present. Even Bangladesh gave the English a practice game.

Visiting teams should arrive in time for practice matches and request for it. No team would proactively offer warmup's

 

[Junaids]

Oh, by the way... England are getting a grand total of 0 practice matches for this tour. India are the most phattu team playing test cricket at present. Even Bangladesh gave the English a practice game.

You're completely misreading the situation.

We know from experience that India would field seam attacks on green wickets, so our practice matches are the Tests in Bangladesh. That's smart!

 

[Nikhil_cric]

I hope Monty gets 10 wickets each innings but India wins

Monty bhai best of luck

Jai Shri Ram. Let's hope so On the other hand I want Moeen and Rashid to be smashed

 

[dani2k]

Visiting teams should arrive in time for practice matches and request for it. No team would proactively offer warmup's

Surprising to learn that England wont have a practice game! The ECB are very good in ensuring their team gets the best possible preparations before a tough tour - be it travelling to Australia a month in advance for the Ashes or training in UAE before the last tour to India. Why is it different now? Is it because they think having played Bangladesh before India is good enough? Interesting!

I do hope that we include Kuldeep into the playing eleven. England would have encountered enough SLAs in Bangladesh and off spinners don't pose them much issues. Chinamen bowlers are rare in international cricket and Kuldeep could be our surprise weapon.

 

[AamchiMumbaikar]

Surprising to learn that England wont have a practice game! The ECB are very good in ensuring their team gets the best possible preparations before a tough tour - be it travelling to Australia a month in advance for the Ashes or training in UAE before the last tour to India. Why is it different now? Is it because they think having played Bangladesh before India is good enough? Interesting!

I do hope that we include Kuldeep into the playing eleven. England would have encountered enough SLAs in Bangladesh and off spinners don't pose them much issues. Chinamen bowlers are rare in international cricket and Kuldeep could be our surprise weapon.

Pata nai... I guess a 2 day match would be arranged in the last minute at the very least else it's overconfidence on ECB's part.

 

[JattMaula]

Pata nai... I guess a 2 day match would be arranged in the last minute at the very least else it's overconfidence on ECB's part.

Well they are the best foreign team in India in recent past.

 

[Bilal7]

Jai Shri Ram. Let's hope so On the other hand I want Moeen and Rashid to be smashed

Monty's career is over, sadly. Try not to cry.

You're completely misreading the situation.

We know from experience that India would field seam attacks on green wickets, so our practice matches are the Tests in Bangladesh. That's smart!

It's sad that England are being forced to do this. For the first time ever, the English team will have the unanimous support of the entire cricketing world, barring India.

Visiting teams should arrive in time for practice matches and request for it. No team would proactively offer warmup's

Every country does proactively offer warmups. How many warmups did New Zealand get? Let's not even mention the farcical pitch that was laid out for that warmup.

Well they are playing BD so good enough practice. Not a valid excuse

How is playing tests in a different country "good enough practice"? I can imagine the outrage if India were given no practice matches for a series in Australia, and told that the tests they play in New Zealand is "good enough practice".

Loosing the toss is part of the game, and a very crucial part in India. That is why I brought it up.

 

[Snow]

5-0 Coming out, England will be going back with tears. It won't be ending on good note.

 

[USofA]

How is playing tests in a different country "good enough practice"? I can imagine the outrage if India were given no practice matches for a series in Australia, and told that the tests they play in New Zealand is "good enough practice".

Loosing the toss is part of the game, and a very crucial part in India. That is why I brought it up.

Why aren't Eng requesting/demanding a warm-up game? I am sure there provision in the rule book for visiting teams to request warm-ups.

 

[Markhor]

England are a much better Test team in Asian conditions than Australia who are a joke on a spin track, New Zealand who've crumbled in Test cricket since the 2015 England tour and South Africa who were dreadful in India last year.

England did play Yasir Shah a lot better after the Lord's debacle. Cook and Root are very good against spin whilst Bairstow has improved.

England may have lost 3-0 and 2-0 in UAE, but many of these matches were close. The 2012 series could've gone either way, and they could've won in Abu Dhabi before the light intervened. In Dubai, they were only 6 overs away from drawing. Their bowlers were getting the ball to reverse too which is useful in India with the SG ball which reverses for a long.

 

[Bilal7]

Why aren't Eng requesting/demanding a warm-up game? I am sure there provision in the rule book for visiting teams to request warm-ups.

You mean a warmup on a green pitch and having to bat against medium pacers?

 

[Chrish]

Monty's career is over, sadly. Try not to cry.



It's sad that England are being forced to do this. For the first time ever, the English team will have the unanimous support of the entire cricketing world, barring India.



Every country does proactively offer warmups. How many warmups did New Zealand get? Let's not even mention the farcical pitch that was laid out for that warmup.



How is playing tests in a different country "good enough practice"? I can imagine the outrage if India were given no practice matches for a series in Australia, and told that the tests they play in New Zealand is "good enough practice".

Loosing the toss is part of the game, and a very crucial part in India. That is why I brought it up.

I would never bring up those arguments if I were you. It's rubbish and you know it

 

[Bilal7]

I would never bring up those arguments if I were you. It's rubbish and you know it

Why should it not be pointed out that Kohli has been extremely lucky with the toss? How many has he lost?

 

[Chrish]

Why should it not be pointed out that Kohli has been extremely lucky with the toss? How many has he lost?

Because he only gets one chance to win the toss just like everyone else. And toss is crucial not only in India but everywhere else

Reminds me of that thread where certain Pakistanis kept bringing dropped catches argument against sachin. It would be valid if fielders were on caffeine while other players were batting then all of a sudden they got injeced with fentanyl when sachin came to bat

So unless the player gets a special treatment which is not the case here, you should drop this nonsense

 

[Bilal7]

Because he only gets one chance to win the toss just like everyone else. And toss is crucial not only in India but everywhere else

Reminds me of that thread where certain Pakistanis kept bringing dropped catches argument against sachin. It would be valid if fielders were on caffeine while other players were batting then all of a sudden they got injeced with fentanyl when sachin came to bat

So unless the player gets a special treatment which is not the case here, you should drop this nonsense

You seem rather annoyed that I'm making a valid point about India's luck that may very well run out against England.

The toss is absolutely crucial in India because of their hazardous pitches which are impossible to bat on by days 3 and 4. I'm sure there are no pitches by day 5.

Kohli is getting special treatment in that he is getting very lucky. Sachin was lucky in the semi-final too.

 

[sensible-indian-fan]

Prepare rank turner? Blame toss.

Prepare normal tracks? Blame toss.

Didn't see anyone talking about how India got to bowl to NZ in eased out conditions in 4th innings in Kolkata while the first 3 innings had the ball doing lots and reducing teams to 30/3.

)

The excuses keep flowing in.

Long may it continue. Hopefully we thrash NZ and retain the number 1 till Eng series....and then retain it for another 12 months...

 

[Chrish]

You seem rather annoyed that I'm making a valid point about India's luck that may very well run out against England.

The toss is absolutely crucial in India because of their hazardous pitches which are impossible to bat on by days 3 and 4. I'm sure there are no pitches by day 5.

Kohli is getting special treatment in that he is getting very lucky. Sachin was lucky in the semi-final too.

You seem not to understand the meaning of special treatment.. Any ways typical logic around here

 

[Chrish]

Prepare rank turner? Blame toss.

Prepare normal tracks? Blame toss.

Didn't see anyone talking about how India got to bowl to NZ in eased out conditions in 4th innings in Kolkata while the first 3 innings had the ball doing lots and reducing teams to 30/3.

)

The excuses keep flowing in.

Long may it continue. Hopefully we thrash NZ and retain the number 1 till Eng series....and then retain it for another 12 months...

Don't understand the insecurity of some people

 

[Bilal7]

You seem not to understand the meaning of special treatment.. Any ways typical logic around here

Well, of course the toss isn't rigged in Kohli's favor. My point has been that he's been very lucky and has won almost every toss in the last 10 matches that he's played. That has given his batters the best conditions to bat in and his spinners the best conditions to bowl in.

What happens when Cook wins the toss and England score 350 in the first innings, on a rapidly deteriorating pitch?

 

[sensible-indian-fan]

Don't understand the insecurity of some people

If India scores some par runs against Eng...people here would get a shock based on what happens next.

Eng batting isn't all that flash. Its their bowling vs our batting which is my worry.

However if we give England the latest Kolkata track and bat like we did against NZ, they may have won or the match would have been super close.

Here's to hoping India thrash every team at home during this season.

 

[Bilal7]

Don't understand the insecurity of some people

You don't seem to understand much at all, if you can't accept that Kohli has been extremely lucky.

 

[Chrish]

What happens when Cook wins the toss and England score 350 in the first innings, on a rapidly deteriorating pitch?

Then it would be all fair and square and everyone will have to move on..

 

[Bilal7]

Then it would be all fair and square and everyone will have to move on..

Then India will most likely lose since even they aren't fully equipped to play on their own pitches.

 

[Crafty_Indian]

I know tosses are important but all these excuses don't bode well for a team that is striving to be the best.If this is the attitude that prevails then not much will be gained by the teams that are copping the losses.

As ultimately to be a top side one needs to rise above these limitations and work to better their positions irrespective of the circumstances.In that regard I believe NZ possess a really good attitude coz u could see the effort they put into in each of their 1st innings(bowling).

And one doesn't need to even look too far.If the team batting 2nd can put up equally big scores then as we have seen in the past the matches have tended to favor them as evidenced by England(2012) and Australia(2013).

 

[sensible-indian-fan]

Contrary to popular perception, its the RAGING RANK TURNERS wihch take the toss out of the equation.

When the pitch turns big from day 1, the deterioration isn't much cos you ahve to deal with the mess from day 1.

The normal tracks where teams get to pile up scores and then the last team has to deal with a big turner...those pitches make tosses so important.

Even if turn starts on day 3....one team gets to play in best conditions and semi tough conditions while the other team gets to play in slightly lesser than best conditions and tough conditions.

So going by that logic, almost every Asian track (for most part) historically makes it unfair for the team batting 2nd.