Boria Majumdar in Birmingham
Don’t be surprised if India ring wholesale changes for the second Test. There could be as many as four changes in the team that played the first Test at Headingley. While the playing XI hasn’t been finalised yet, it can be said that each of these changes are being seriously mulled on.
The first is certainty. Jasprit Bumrah will be resting and will be replaced by Akash Deep. He has been bowling well at the nets and is finally niggle free. Akash had a reasonable Australia tour and in helpful conditions could pose a few problems for the English batters with his swing.
The second change is an interesting one. It is being contemplated on if Prasidh Krishna can be replaced by Arshdeep Singh. In the absence of Bumrah, Arshdeep’s ability to swing the ball late could come in handy. The caveat here is not rubber-stamped yet.
The third change could be Washington Sundar for Shardul Thakur. That Washington is batting and bowling well was emphasised in the Indian press conference on Monday.
Finally, one between Sai Sudarsan or Karun Nair could give way to Nitish Kumar Reddy. He can also bowl a few overs of medium pace and give relief to the main pace bowlers if needed.
In this set-up, India will have six bowling options – Mohammed Siraj, Arshdeep, Akash, Ravindra Jadeja, Washington and Nitish.
On what promises to be a real high-scoring game, six bowlers could well be needed.
Personally I’d have liked to see Kuldeep Yadav in the mix but unless there is a last day rethink, it doesn’t look likely.
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