The 4th Test at Emirates Old Trafford starts on Wednesday, 23rd of July and the anticipation is building with both teams preparing hard for a crucial Test of the series. While things are settled in the England camp with just Liam Dawson replacing Shoaib Bashir being the only change from Lord’s, the same cannot be said about India.
The visitors India have been hit with injuries creating more headaches about team selection. So much so, that Anshul Kamboj has been added to the squad and has been kept as cover. He has joined the team in Manchester as well. With injuries and players out of form, the team finalization for the 4th Test is turning out to be really tricky for India. They have questions aplenty in both batting and bowling.
Karun Nair’s position in focus; Rishabh Pant’s role as pure batter or keeper?
First, let us focus on the batting department. It failed as a unit when it mattered in the 193 run chase. Prior to that, the batting had crossed 350+ on all 5 occasions. But when the game was on the line on a tricky pitch, the Indians faltered. The focus is on Karun Nair as he has been given three opportunities, but has not nailed that opportunity to the fullest. He got starts before getting out in 30s and 40s. It hasn’t helped that he batted at Number 6 in the first Test match and then Number 3 in the next two Tests. But he has failed to nail down his position in the side.
The question is whether India will stick with Nair for another game or go back to Sai Sudharsan at 3 who was also unfairly dropped after the Headingly Test. It’s a really tricky call that the Indian team management has to make. The other interesting aspect is Rishabh Pant suffered a finger injury in the Lord’s Test and did not keep wickets. Dhruv Jurel kept in place of him with Pant batting only.
The question everyone had was whether Pant will play as a pure batter or will he don the gloves. If he plays as a batter, then Jurel has to be in the XI in place of Nitish Kumar Reddy. Reddy has been ruled out of the remainder of the series due to ligament damage in his knees in training. Jurel might come in there or if Pant dons the gloves which he might seeing the practice sessions, then we could have Shardul Thakur replacing Reddy in the XI as Thakur is the other all-rounder.
The rest of the batting is fine with Yashasvi Jaiswal and Shubman Gill looking to bounce back after a bad game at Lord’s and KL Rahul continuing his decent form that he has shown so far. It is the bowling that needs addressing with injuries plaguing the Indians.
Arshdeep Singh ruled out of 4th Test, Akash Deep doubtful as bowling looks in trouble
It is the bowling department of India that needs attention at this stage. Arshdeep Singh injured his bowling arm and has been ruled out of the 4th Test match with Nitish Reddy out of the series. Akash Deep had an injury at Lord’s and seems to have not recovered fully. We have to wait for toss to find out. Mohammed Siraj confirmed at the press conference that Jasprit Bumrah will definitely play this Test match with series on the line. Siraj will play but who will be the third seamer if Akash Deep is not fit.
It could be Prasidh Krishna who played the opening two Test matches or the new entrant Anshul Kamboj who has just joined the squad in Manchester and is bowling in the nets. Then there is the curious case of Kuldeep Yadav. Kuldeep bowled at the nets as usual, but whether he gets a game remains to be seen. If Kuldeep comes in, Washington Sundar has to make way as you cannot play three spinners with rain around in Manchester.
Ravindra Jadeja cannot be dropped as he is firing with bat and doing a containing job with ball in hand. Sundar got 4 wickets in the second innings, but he is yet to contribute significantly with the bat in hand. Gautam Gambhir believes in batting depth and goes with both Jadeja and Sundar, but that fell flat on his face in the Lord’s Test as India failed to chase down 193. Reports are saying Kuldeep might finally get a game in this Test match.
There are loads of questions and less answers at this stage for India. What should be their ideal playing XI is confusing people and the management as well. We all have to wait for the toss on 23rd July to find out the playing XI of India as the Indians do not announce playing XI in advance.
What Lies Ahead
India are in must-win territory as the bandwagon moves to Emirates Old Trafford for the 4th Test of the 5-Match series. The hosts lead the series 2-1. India needs to battle injury crisis and player form alongside venue history to get the win here and level the series. India are yet to taste success in 9 attempts at Old Trafford with 5 off those matches ending in Draw. England love playing here.
Can India break the Old Trafford jinx and square the series 2-2 going into the final Test at the Oval? Or will England seal the deal at Old Trafford making the final Test of the series a dead rubber? Only time will tell as the excitement builds for the Manchester Test with the hope that rain does not play spoilsport. There is forecast of a lot of rain in Manchester and hope we get a full cracking game ahead.