England vs India 2014 - 2nd Test: Preview
London, July 16 (IANS) Amidst simmering tensions, India will be looking to build on the confidence from the drawn Test in Trent Bridge when they face England in the second of the five-Test series at the Lord's here on Thursday.
The relations between the two teams have deteriorated over the past 24 hours after England fast bowler James Anderson was charged by the International Cricket Council (ICC) for violation of the Code of Conduct by allegedly abusing and pushing India's Ravindra Jadeja during the first cricket Test at Trent Bridge.
Anderson, who was adjudged Man of the Match at Trent Bridge, faces a ban of at least two Tests if he is found guilty. He now faces a hearing which, according to the ICC code, needs to take place within 14 days.
But Anderson is eligible to play at Lord's. The English fast bowler, however, will be happy about the fact that last time when the two teams met here in 2011, when India lost by 196 runs, he picked up seven wickets, including a fifer in the second innings.
This time around, however, it would be difficult for Anderson to repeat the exploits of 2011. This is the second Test in the summer at Lord's. The last Test here was against Sri Lanka in late May and it was not much different from the featherbed in Trent Bridge.
The focus is now on Lord's curator Mick Hunt to prepare a track that would be an advantage for the hosts. In such a situation, it is to be seen whether Hunt prepares a track that would help England bowlers hunt down the Indian batsmen.
It is highly unlikely that both India and England would be making any changes to the playing XI. Though England surprisingly called up specialist spinner Simon Kerrigan to appease skipper Alastair Cook, who doesn't seem to have much faith in Moeen Ali, but it is highly unlikely that Kerrigan would play a part in the Test.
A glimpse of India's training session here also dropped hints that all-rounder Stuart Binny, who struck a match-saving half-century on debut in Trent Bridge, was most likely to retain his place in the side.
Though there were calls for inclusion of offie Ravichandran Ashwin in the Indian team, India captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni would prefer to retain the playing XI. Ashwin could have replace Jadeja, but India are not going to leave out a player who they think got a raw deal.
Predicted Teams:
England: Alastair Cook (captain), Sam Robson, Gary Ballance, Ian Bell, Joe Root, Moeen Ali, Matt Prior (wicketkeeper), Ben Stokes, Stuart Broad, Liam Plunkett, James Anderson.
India: Murali Vijay, Shikhar Dhawan, Cheteshwar Pujara, Virat Kohli, Ajinkya Rahane, Mahendra Singh Dhoni (captain/wicketkeeper), Ravindra Jadeja, Stuart Binny, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Ishant Sharma, Mohammed Shami.
Umpires: Kumar Dharmasena (Sri Lanka) and Bruce Oxenford (Australia)
Match referee: David Boon (Australia)