Shane Warne slams Joe Root's England for not declaring their second innings
Former Australian leg-spinner Shane Warne couldn't fathom England's tactics against Team India late on Day 4 of the first Test in Chennai. The 51-year-old slammed Joe Root and his men for not declaring their second innings, despite having a daunting lead.
Shane Warne believes that despite dominating the majority of the Chennai Test, England wanted to rule out the possibility of India chasing down the target on Day 5. Perhaps the recent performance of the Indian team Down Under might have played on Root's mind.
Shane Warne took to Twitter to tweet:
"England’s mindset is let’s not lose this test match - rather than, what’s the best way to win this Test match and how many overs could we need! This batting on decision is now putting a lot of pressure on England’s bowlers and particularly their spinners!"
England already had a lead of 360 runs at Tea on Day 4 and Shane Warne believes it was enough for the visitors to defend, given the nature of the pitch. Not only did the visitors continue batting after Tea, but they also showed no urgency in scoring quick runs. The Australian was baffled by these tactics and questioned them in another tweet.
"Very surprised England haven’t declared yet & why aren’t they trying to get 400 asap (sic)? England batted too long in the 1st innings too & now letting the game drift & showing no urgency at all. Surely they are better off bowling now than wasting overs not scoring any runs," Warne wrote.
Michael Vaughan joins Shane Warne in taking a dig at England's tactics
Former England skipper Michael Vaughan was also confused by his country's tactics, especially when they had the game in their control. He took to Twitter to express his frustration on observing England's lack of intent.
Vaughan was shocked to see the field placement by Joe Root, especially with deep fielders in the last over of the day. This was a time when no batsman in the world would have taken the risk of playing their shots.
"I would like to know from spinners out there WHY spinners have a cover point on the boundary when you have near on 400 on the board on a pitch that is spinning square ... and you an off spinner bowling ... and it’s the last over of the day!" wrote Vaughan.
Shane Warne agreed to what Vaughan had to say and termed the strategy by Root as something that didn't make any kind of sense.
Thus, England may face a lot of external scrutiny if Team India somehow manages to avoid defeat. But given the recent form of the hosts in Test cricket, one wouldn't bet against them pulling off the highest successful run-chase in Test history.