Root's wicket has shifted the momentum slightly back in India's favor, reckons Zaheer Khan
Zaheer Khan has chimed in with his thoughts regarding India's position in the fourth Test against England at The Oval. The former fast bowler believes the pendulum may have swung in the visitors' favor after Joe Root's wicket.
Concerns around India's batting unit continue to be a key topic of discussion after they were at risk of another batting collapse.
However, the Indian bowlers once again showed that they are at their most dangerous when their backs are against the wall. After India managed to muster just 191 runs in their first innings, Jasprit Bumrah gave his side the ideal start by sending both England openers in the hut in his second over.
It seemed like it would be another case of England's skipper, Joe Root, taking the game away from India before Umesh Yadav produced a peach of a delivery at the stroke of stumps to dismiss Root.
After stumps on day one, Zaheer Khan reflected on the events of the day in his appearance on "Cricbuzz Chatter". Khan reckoned that 191 was still a low total on this surface but Root's wicket swung the momentum back in India's favor Here's what he had to say:
"The score, 191, is still less, considering how the pitch is playing but Root's wicket has shifted the balance of momentum slightly but there's still a lot of work to do. The responsibility is with the bowlers. They did the job with the bat and will need to do well tomorrow to cover up for the batsmen and allow India to gain parity in this game."
Zaheer Khan also hailed Shardul Thakur's half-century as a game-changing knock which allowed India to bounce back when they were down and out. However, he was quick to remind everyone that momentum might be on India's side but the pitch does look like it will flatten out as the game goes on.
"The momentum of the first day is always important and the mood in the Indian camp will be upbeat. The wicket is playing nicely. Thakur's aggressive innings showed that the batsmen can trust the bounce on this pitch and play their shots, so it will be a challenging task for India's bowlers. The first session will be crucial for this match. If the bowlers can get wickets in that first session tomorrow, India will be in a strong position," Zaheer Khan added.
"India have to stick to a plan and be patient tomorrow" - Zaheer Khan
The former ace Indian fast bowler also reckons that India will have to show some grit and discipline tomorrow. They have to ensure that they don't get frustrated and stick to their basics rather than trying new plans. The pitch seemed pretty flat, so they might have to switch to a defensive plan to contain the runs and apply a sense of pressure on England.
"India have to stick to a plan and be patient tomorrow. Dismiss the nightwatchman and keep the pressure up on England. If the nightwatchman gets set, that starts affecting the bowler's and team's morale. India will have to be aware of that. If they don't get wickets in the first session, then they will have to find a defensive plan and be disciplined," Zaheer Khan said.
Zaheer suggested that the pitch doesn't have any demons, so the bowlers shouldn't deflect from their plans if things don't go their way. In situations like these, with the pitch flattening out, surrendering a lead of 40-50 runs might not be as significant, as the Indian batsmen should be able to wipe that out with significant ease.
"The pitch doesn't have any demons so surrendering a lead of 50 won't be a big concern because it'll only get easier to bat and the batsmen should be able to cover it up. Overcast conditions might favour at times with the new ball, but apart from that the pitch is only expected to get better to bat on. It's shaping up to be an exciting Test match and it'll be interesting to see which team deals with the pressure better," Zaheer Khan concluded.