India skipper Rohit Sharma said it was a headache to choose between Axar Patel and Kuldeep Yadav for the first Test between India and England in Hyderabad, starting on January 24.
The role of a wrist-spinner in Tests has been fairly limited in India. Ever since the retirement of the great Anil Kumble, India have never had a wrist-spinner for the long run. The fact that Kuldeep has played only four Test matches at home since 2017 is a testament to that. However, with Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja being the first-choice spinners, the addition of Kuldeep’s left-arm wrist spin could add variety to the tweaking department.
On the other hand, Axar is the frontrunner if India opt for three spinners. Axar has an impressive record at home, with 42 wickets in just 10 matches, including five 5-wicket hauls. In the 2021 Test series against England at home, Axar was the wrecker-in-chief, taking 27 wickets in three Tests, including four five-fors.
“Kuldeep gives you a certain X-Factor with his bowling,” said Rohit. “He has been bowling well of late. Kuldeep becomes a crucial player if the wicket has bounce or doesn’t have bounce. He has become a mature bowler now. Kuldeep has improved in the last couple of years. He is a tempting option.
“Axar, he gives us something extra with the bat. It’s a headache for us to pick one of them in the XI. But we know we have quality in our spin department.”
KL Rahul, who took on the wicketkeeping duties in South Africa, won’t be the one wearing the big gloves in the upcoming series, as was confirmed by Rahul Dravid, the coach, yesterday. Instead, either Dhruv Jurel will make his Test debut, or KS Bharat, who kept wickets during the Australia series and the World Test Championship (WTC) final, will be the one standing behind the stumps. “KL Rahul won’t be keeping in this series,” said Rohit. “We will observe and evaluate the performances of Bharat and Jurel. We will do whatever is right for the team.”
Downplaying England’s Bazball approach, Rohit made it clear that his team was focused on playing good cricket and not overly concerned about the opposition’s playing style.
“We will look to play our cricket,” he said. “I am not interested in how the opposition is going to play. I am focused on what we want to do as a team.”