"Gill, Vihari missed the opportunity to cement their place" - Wasim Jaffer after end of play on Day 3 of 5th IND vs ENG Test
Former Indian opener Wasim Jaffer believes Shubman Gill and Hanuma Vihari failed to make the most of their opportunities in the Edgbaston Test against England.
Gill returned to the team as both Rohit Sharma and KL Rahul were injured and looked in good touch in the first essay. However, the 22-year-old was caught in slips in both innings for 17 and four respectively due to his hard hands towards the ball.
Shubman Gill after that Gabba Innings:
29
50
0
14
11
15
0
28
8
52
1
44
47
17
4
Vihari, who recently became India's No.3 in Tests, also got starts in both innings but failed to convert them into big scores. He ended up with scores of 20 and 11 respectively.
Wasim Jaffer opined that the dyo could struggle to hold onto their places once the main openers and a few prolific run-getters from domestic cricket get into the team. Speaking to ESPNCricinfo, he said:
"(On whether Gill and Vihari missed out on the opportunity to cement their place) Yes. Because after this the main players like Rohit Sharma and Rahul will come back. Players like Sarfaraz Khan are knocking on the door and even Suryakumar Yadav is available. So yes to some extent (they have missed a chance)."
I fear axe might fall on Vihari soon as his role, batting position and selection in perticular series, nothing is consolidated yet.
Such utility players often get first axe when some chopping has to be done.
Not his fault though.
Very difficult for England to depend on just one person: Wasim Jaffer
England have been simply brilliant in chasing targets over the last three Tests as they hunted down totals in excess of 270 in the fourth innings easily. However, Wasim Jaffer believes they can't solely depend on Jonny Bairstow alone, as the likes of Joe Root and captain Ben Stokes also need to deliver. He stated:
"(On whether England can even chase 400 with Bairstow) To some extent yes, but I think it will be very difficult to depend on just one person. This is because even Root and Stokes are important batters in this team."
India's lead has already reached 257 and England wouldn't want it to go beyond 350. The hosts need early wickets to prevent tge visitors from batting them out of the game.
India will begin Day 4 on 125/3 with Cheteshwar Pujara (50 batting) and Rishabh Pant (30 batting) at the crease.