snip~~
Patidar gets another opportunity to prove himself in the absence of KL Rahul. Not bad for a beginners luck in a highly competitive Indian cricket team. I think for the Ranchi test they should give Sundar an opportunity. The guy has proven ability to bat but as a spinner sometimes he can be good. Ashwin should be given a rest just like Bhumrah. Shiraj and Akash deep would be preferred in the team. Mukesh got an opportunity earlier in the series but failed to prove himself. Ideally, Axar/Sunder (Spin all rounder), or Mukesh/ Akashdeep (Seamer) selection should depend on the pitch. Ollie Pope came to interact with the media and mentioned that there are a lot of cracks on the deck so it could be a tricky spin pitch but the Rohit-Dravid duo is conservative with their approach so I won't be surprised if they pick an extra seamer instead of spin all rounder. |
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~snip~
That makes a lot of sense. Thanks for clarifying that. I believe Ishan Kishan was one of them who was neglecting domestic stuff for the IPL. Chahar and Bishnoi also pulled the same stunt.
Okay fellas, they did rested Bumrah for the 4th test and surprisingly KL Rahul is still in recovery mode (Patidar might get some relief). During 2nd test, it looked like his injury wasn't serious but that's not the case anymore. Virtually no one knows what kind of Pitch Ranchi will roll. Bumrah is not there so it won't be a bad idea if it's a spin track, with this even Axar can play instead of an extra seamer.  |
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Turning into IPL might solve financial problems but playing for India remains a dream for everyone, that's why the majority of them keep doing hard yards in the domestic circuit for years.
Money > Dreams for most people which is why those hard workers would instantly shift to leagues like the IPL if they got an opportunity. If you didn't earn the Indian colors then it's tough. Generally, if you are not capped player then apart from the IPL, you will play domestic as well. There is a reason that now BCCI is doubling down on players to focus on domestic cricket, they even signalled capped players that if they are free and fit then go and play for your respective state board.
BCCI is weird as hell. On one hand, they are primarily responsible for the whole crazy T20 boom in recent times and they are enforcing all of this stuff suddenly on the other hand. Bizarre! Yeah, you can say that but BCCI has to look at the bigger picture. Domestic cricket is factory and cream players get to play for India. IPL is a bonus for them and it's same for many talented individuals from the domestic who are unable to cement their position in the national side because of competition, it could be any format. If the domestic system gets weakened, the national team will face the same music and it's directly connected to IPL as it's money-making product because you need Indian talents and star value for your product. In recent times, a few capped players started to neglect Ranji, etc for IPL despite being free from the national team. It didn't sit well with the BCCI, hence the recent dictate. |
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@Sithara007 Good news for Nepal Cricket and you must be happy now. I have been advocating the same for a long time. Finally, BCCI doing something right and focusing on Nepal cricket, der aaye par durast aaye. I Guess Jaishankar's recent visit had some role in it.  |
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^^ The kind of pitches Indians are rolling in the series, i believe Bumrah should play the remaining 2 matches. The point is, the Indian system is tough because of competition and when you get early success then you have to perform consistently for the next 10-15 tests as well otherwise someone else will replace you.
This is one of the reasons why more and more cricketers are shifting their time and resources to the T20 format since they stand to earn more money and popularity in a way shorter period without worrying too much about other factors. Honestly, I would do the same because time is money. Test cricket is great for several reasons, but it requires a huge time+effort investment. Turning into IPL might solve financial problems but playing for India remains a dream for everyone, that's why the majority of them keep doing hard yards in the domestic circuit for years. The process goes like this : Break records in SMAT and some franchises will give you a chance. Break records in Ranji and SMAT then franchises will pick you up and some might even fight for you during auction bid war because their scouts do their homework and Indian selectors will keep an eye on you and if the opportunity comes then the possibility of India debut. There is a reason that now BCCI is doubling down on players to focus on domestic cricket, they even signalled capped players that if they are free and fit then go and play for your respective state board. |
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Yashasvi Jaiswal spot in test cricket is reserved because of his two double centuries in two consecutive test matches. I am not sure about Shubman Gill, he has already played 23 test matches and he is not very consistent in batting. He has scored 91 runs in last test which means he has secured his spot for this series at least.
It was England second biggest defeat in terms of runs and heaviest in 90 years. England should have scored at least 250 runs in second innings to avoid such humiliation.
There is no such thing as reserved or permanent in the Indian team and it is also true for Jaiswal or other young batters, considering many are waiting in the wings. One recent example is another stylish opener, Mayank Aggrawal, he had the same success as Jaiswal when he made his debut in Australia in 2018, he impressed everyone and in his first 13 innings (10 tests) he was averaging 65 with 2 daddy 200s + 1 ton and 3 50s but in the next 12 test match he hit a rough patch (still had another daddy 100 and 2 50s under his belt in the rough patch) and now he's nowhere near the test squad. Gill was about to face the axe after 2nd test but he made 100 and saved his position, his recent 91 runs inning also gave him an extra 4-5 tests long rope and maybe add the next Australia tour as well. The point is, the Indian system is tough because of competition and when you get early success then you have to perform consistently for the next 10-15 tests as well otherwise someone else will replace you. |
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The younger players are inconsistent now, but they might improve and perform way more consistently in the future. Also, Pant might return too which would be a big boost. Consistency will come with more experience. Look at the players. Yashasvi Jaiswal is just 22 years old. Shubman Gill is 24. Even Shreyas Iyer is still in his 20s. Rishabh Pant would be a good addition to the squad as well, and he is in his mid 20s. And then we have all the younger players who are still in bench, such as Sarfaraz Khan (26 years old) and Abhimanyu Easwaran (28 years). These players can only improve with time. Even the second string keepers, including Anuj Rawat, Jitesh Sharma and Dhruv Jurel are all in their early 20s. Iyer is not getting a spot in the team for the 2024 home season. After the England series, we have 5 more home tests against Bangladesh and New Zealand. His only hope would be if someone gets injured in the middle order. Don't forget Kohli will also join the team. Dhruv Jurel already impressed many with his test batting (he was a proven talent with the bat in the T-20) and with the gloves he did fumble a few chances in the first inning but he was on the money in the last inning so i believe he'll get a long rope of 5-6 tests in India. Bharat will now warm the bench or some young keeper will replace him in the squad, which won't be a bad idea. Yuvraj, Dhoni etc, what happened? Replaced. Although, I agree sometimes we miss their presence on field, but that attachment too soon fades away.
You might be talking about the overall transition period but in red-ball cricket, Yuvraj was mediocre at best. Dhoni was good at the start but in the latter part of his career, he was the uninspiring skipper because he just didn't want to play test cricket or lead the test team. His only achievement was preparing Kohli to take the reign. |
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^^ The match is done n dusted already but I still would like to see Root doing a hard yard and score a ton.
A lot of people here in this thread kept repeating that Test cricket is dying and I've said every single time that as far as India is concerned, just follow the media right deals if you want to judge the health of Test cricket.
Right now more than 500 million live viewers watching a test match, thanks to JIO.
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Okay, ladies and gents. We have reached a pre BAZBALL era where England were quite familiar with 18/2 scoreline, now it's only fair if Root get his century, he's too good player and have been silient in this tour with the bat.
Fingers cross for him and wont mind a bit if he gets a ton and shut up his haters, mostly retired english players and media.
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Kuldeep did come as a nightwatchman but ladka looking good, he always had a defensive game but he's showing some hitting skill as well which is not too bad. I believe he should start working hard on his batting considering Jaddu and Ashwin won't be playing for a long time.
For Jadeja, Washington Sundar is proper replacement, for Ashwin yes, Kuldeep could take his place after honing his batting skills. BTW, another unfortunate run-out and Gill misses his hundred. England must be happy with this happening. Well not really, Jaddu is a left arm and when he got injured Axar came as his replacement, another left arm spinner. Sundar is offie similar to Ashwin but his bowling is not up to the mark, he needs to work hard on his bowling if he wants to cement his position. Kuldeep is a wrist spinner and attacking one, if he's contributing with the bat in the down the order then it's a plus. |
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@Sithara Jaiswal is fit to bat again. He was retired hurt, not retired out. Also, reports are coming up that Ashwin could join today and could be in action right away.
Kuldeep did come as a nightwatchman but ladka looking good, he always had a defensive game but he's showing some hitting skill as well which is not too bad. I believe he should start working hard on his batting considering Jaddu and Ashwin won't be playing for a long time.
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Bloody hell 126 runs lead after last night's butchering! Simply amazing.
Being honest here, when i heard Ashwin had to leave I wasn't expecting a close to 3 figure lead but all 4 bowlers did the job beautifully. England would be mighty disappointed with this effort, now Indian batters need to step up and take responsibility.
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The danger batter Ben Duckett out of an extraordinary ball by Kuldeep Yadav. He never expected that he would get caught in such a manner. India is back again already taking 3 wickets in the first cricket session and suddenly Rohit now has more attacking field. Two wickets were taken by Kuldeep and one by Bhumrah and Kuldeep is getting good spin from the pitch. Runs have dried down as Indian bowlers are not allowing the English batter to settle down both Stokes and Floakes are new batters. I am expecting a few more wickets by the spinners and I think Rohit should bring back Ashwin to the bowling attack.
With all due respect to Kulli, that ball was utter rubbish lol. 9 out of 10 times any batter could've pushed that ball for a single or left alone and even hit for boundaries so it was a lucky break. India is fighting back and it's so pleasing to see because their back was against the wall as Poms did get a breathtaking start and mind you Ashwin is not available to ball today or might not play this test match due to some medical emergency (his mother) so Indians are 1 bowler short (Also 1 batter because he did score runs). Hope everything goes well in his family and he comes back soon. |
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Poms are sprinting and deserve a lot of credit for such positive batting and it'd be no surprise if they manage to wipe out all deficits in the next 50 overs.
Having said that, the last 5 overs showed a bit of sign that this attacking beast can be tamed. Rohit just needs to be proactive with their field settings and bowlers must follow the instruction.
Rohit took a page from Stoke's playbook and set a heavy leg side field and Siraj went with the short ball tactics and in the same over they managed to manufacture a wicket, similar to what England did. India needs more of that, even if they go for runs.
Until Duckett is there, none of these tactics are going to work. At no point of time, he looked lacking confidence. Tomorrow's first session is going to be very crucial. If Duckett survives it, then he may even take England to a first-innings lead. Else, Root and Ben Stokes need to build a partnership to stabilize the innings. BTW, I am not really sure whether Jasprit Bumrah will be available for extended spells tomorrow. He was showing some signs of discomfort during the last session today. And I would still say that selecting two pacers for this match was a blunder by the Indian selectors. Don't care much if orthodox tactics fail, traditional tactics of test cricket is not working anymore so won't mind if India try new things, even if back fires or maybe they can mix things up because Indian seamers do know things or two about reversing the ball. So far it's been a flat track so going with 2 seamers is not a bad decision IMO. One thing is for sure we'll have a cracking 3rd day and the match usually moves quickly when Poms are batting, bet it runs or mini collapse. |
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Poms are sprinting and deserve a lot of credit for such positive batting and it'd be no surprise if they manage to wipe out all deficits in the next 50 overs.
Having said that, the last 5 overs showed a bit of sign that this attacking beast can be tamed. Rohit just needs to be proactive with their field settings and bowlers must follow the instruction.
Rohit took a page from Stoke's playbook and set a heavy leg side field and Siraj went with the short ball tactics and in the same over they managed to manufacture a wicket, similar to what England did. India needs more of that, even if they go for runs.
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Indian tail and lower order had to work so hard for those 110 odd runs and here we are looking at Duckett making mockery of everything and just having fun with the field and bowlers.
Madlad is not even respecting Ashwin lol who just happened to touch a big milestone of a 500th wicket. Runs on the board for India but in the BAZBALL era there is no pressure of the scoreboard on this England team.
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Brilliant effort in the end, tail did wag for India. Things could've been better but the Indian camp wouldn't be too disappointed with this scoreline.
It's 440 because England were awarded 5 runs already. After all, Jadeja and Ashwin were a bit naughty and the former was touching the danger area quite regularly. The penalty for such an offense should be higher than 5 runs IMO.
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Jurel looking better than I expected, certainly a better choice than Bharat. We are seeing some proper test cricket being played by Ashwin Jurel, also gotta give applause to Stokes for how he plays with the field, and how he tries to bait the batters.
India is at 380 right now, minimum 400 is on cards, I stick with 400 despite 3 wickets left because I feel after 1 wickets falls from, there won't be much run increase — defend, defend and out.
Jimmy Anderson hasn't had much success, only 1 wicket so far, may be due to pressure to reach 700 wickets, or is it not-so helpful pitch?
It's a batting track with a bit of bounce and reverse swing but atm the ball is not reversing so can't blame Jimmy much. Stokes captaincy and his unorthodox field setup manufactured a fair amount of wickets in this series so he has been proactive, one of the reasons they keep getting penalty points in almost every match because of poor over rates so it's a double edge sword unless you don't care about the points at all. Crucial partnership but they need to be greedy and keep moving forward and the pitch will remain the same for tomorrow so need all extra cushion for the bowlers. ~snip~
Your predictions about Jadeja are always spot on. You read him perfectly. He really needs to work on that particular weakness of his. His batting pattern is open book and he's already 35 so i don't think he has any time left to work on it. The best he can do is work on his running calls, he should know that other players are not as quick as him. |
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As usual, Jadeja didn't bother the scoreboard much and got out. He followed the typical Jaddu script, go not out by the end of the day and gift your wicket the next day early in the morning.
I hope it's not a repeat of 1st inning of the first match, where India handed out the advantage to Poms by losing 5 wickets cheaply. The tail needs to wag today, wishful thinking.
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IMO now Jaddu needs to score Sarfraz's runs as well and not throw his wicket in the morning, which he's famous for.
The way Sarfraz was playing, I don't think Jadeja can make up for it. Yeah, tough cookie for Jadeja but he should try and must add another 60 runs to his tally. In this series, he already has ran out 2 (Ash, Sarfraz and himself) of his teammates in just 2 matches, which cost 70-100 runs to India. The pitch is looking flat atm and with the BAZBALL we can count on England to bat aggressively so need 150 runs more. |
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