3 Surprises India should spring at Edgbaston
India and England were engaged in an engrossing battle in the T20 and ODI series. While the visitors were victorious in the T20 series, England won the ODI series to even the scores. It is now time for the Test series to take centre stage and be the deciding factor in this enthralling battle between cricket’s superpowers.
The first test match takes place at Edgbaston in Birmingham. England have not been the force of yesteryear. They drew their most recent test series against India’s arch rivals, Pakistan. India, on the other hand, arrived in England as the No.1 test team. Before their drubbing of Afghanistan, India gave a good account of themselves in South Africa, losing a closely-fought series 2-1.
As the serene, white of Test cricket replaces the vibrant colours of limited overs cricket, there are a lot of unanswered questions. None more so than India’s team selection.
Through this article, we would look at a few surprises India should spring to catch the English off-guard. If India get off to a winning start at Edgbaston, a fourth test series victory in the United Kingdom might not be far away.
1. Play KL Rahul instead of Shikhar Dhawan
KL Rahul arrived on English shores on the back of an astounding IPL, where he scored tons of runs. He started the tour brilliantly, scoring a match winning hundred in the first T20.
In Tests, Rahul has not yet come up with the performances his talent warrants. However, over the past year, Rahul has matured as a batsman and now seems destined to make his mark on the Test circuit. In the warm-up game against Essex, Rahul struck a solid 58 in the first innings while remaining unbeaten on 36 in the second essay.
Dhawan, on the other hand, bagged a pair, facing a grand total of 4 balls throughout the match. Though Dhawan is a wonderful stroke-maker, his technique has found him wanting in bowler-friendly conditions. In England, Dhawan has played 6 innings, scoring an aggregate of 122 runs with a highest score of 37. On his last trip to England, he was dropped mid-way in favour of Gautam Gambhir.
Technically, Rahul is better equipped to handle the swinging and seaming conditions on offer in England. To supplement this, Rahul is in a better touch than Dhawan. The last thing India would want is to expose Kohli to the new ball. The risk of that happening seems to be very high if Dhawan comes out to open. Hence, the Indian think-tank needs to take a bold call and drop Dhawan in favour of KL Rahul.